Johann Dzierzon
Jan Dzierżon (Polish) or Johann Dzierzon (German) (16 January 1811 – 26 October 1906) was born in Polish family in Prussian-German. He was famous for his discovery of parthenogenesis among bees and for designing a movable-frame beehive. He was also a Roman Catholic priest for a time. Dzierzon published his studies in German and Polish and recognized himself as a Pole.[citation needed]
Biography
Dzierzon was born in Lowkowitz (Łowkowice) near Kreuzburg (Kluczbork) in Silesia, Prussia. In 1822, he moved to Breslau (Wrocław), where he completed studies at a gymnasium. In 1833, he graduated from the Faculty of Catholic Theology of the University of Breslau, and, in 1834, became an ordained Roman Catholic priest. He took over a parish in Karlsmarkt (Karłowice) from 1835–1868.
In his apiary, Dzierzon studied the social life of honeybees and constructed several experimental beehives. In 1838, he devised the first practical movable-comb beehive, which allowed manipulation of individual honeycombs without destroying the structure of the hive. The correct distance between combs had been described as 1 and ½ inches from the center of one top bar to the center of next one. In 1848 Dzierzon introduced grooves into the hive’s side walls replacing the strips of wood for moving top bars. The grooves had been 8 x 8 mm – exact average between 1/4 and 3/8 of an inch, which is range resently called "bee space" . His design quickly gained popularity in Europe and North America. On the basis of the aforementioned measurements, August von Berlepsch (May 1852) in Thuringia and L. L. Langstroth (October 1852) in the United States designed their frame-movable hives.
In 1835, Dzierzon discovered that the drones are produced from unfertilized eggs. The discovery was publicised in 1845. His results caused a revolution in bee crossbreeding. In 1854, he discovered the mechanism of secretion of the royal jelly and its role in the development of queens.
In 1872, Dzierzon received a honoris causa doctorate from the University of Munich. In 1874, he moved back to Lowkowitz, Landkreis Kreuzburg O.S. In 1906 he died at the age of 95 in his village.
Legacy
Dzierzon is the father of modern apiology and apiculture. All modern beehives are descendants of his design.
From 1936–1945 his hometown of Lowkowitz was renamed Bienendorf (German for "Bee Village") by Nazi Germany. It was renamed Łowkowice after the town's transfer to Communist Poland following World War II.
In 1946, the town of Rychbach (Reichenbach until 1945) was renamed Dzierżoniów in Dzierzon's honor. In 1962 a Jan Dzierżon's Museum of Apiculture was established in Kluczbork, the former Kreuzburg. Another was established in Maciejów, where he also worked.
Dzierzon received many honors, among them them the Austrian Order of Franz Joseph, the Bavarian Merit Order of St. Michael, the Hessian Ludwig Order, the Russian Order of St. Anna, the Swedish Order of Vasa, the Prussian Order of the Crown (4th Class) at his 90th birthday, and many more. He was an honorary member of the German Academy of Sciences Leopoldina, among others. Dzierzon received an honorary diploma at Graz, presented by Archduke Johann of Austria. In 1903 he was presented to Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria. In 1904 he became an honorary member of the Schlesische Gesellschaft für vaterländische Kultur ("Silesian Society for Fatherland Culture").
Selected works
His works include 800 articles in several scientific magazines and 26 books. The most important include:
- 1848-1852: Theorie und Praxis des neuen Bienenfreundes ("Theory and Practice of the Modern Bee-friend")
- 1852: Nachtrag zur Theorie und Praxis... (Appendix to "Theory and Practice")
- 1854-1856: Der Bienenfreund aus Schlesien ("The Bee-friend from Silesia")
- 1861-1878: Rationelle Bienenzucht ("Rational apiculture")
- 1890: Der Zwillingstock ("Semi-detached beehive")
Articles by Dzierzon in Frauendörfer Blättern were collected by Rentmeister Bruckisch from Grottkau (Grodków) and re-published under the titles:
- Neue verbesserte Bienen-Zucht des Johann Dzierzon, Brieg 1855
- Neue verbesserte Bienen-Zucht des Pfarrers Dzierzon zu Carlsmarkt in Schlesien, 1861
- Lebensbeschreibung von ihm selbst, vom 4. August 1885 (abgedruckt im Heimatkalender des Kreises Kreuzburg/OS 1931, S. 32-28), 1885 (Dziergon's biography, reprinted in 1931)
- Der Zwillingsstock, 1890
Further reading
- L. Brożek "Jan Dzierżon. Studium monograficzne" Opole 1978
- W. Kocowicz i A. Kuźba "Tracing Jan Dzierżon Passion" Poznań 1987
- A. Gładysz "Jan Dzierżon, pszczelarz o światowej sławie" Katowice 1957
- H. Borek i S. Mazak "Polskie pamiątki rodu Dzierżoniów" Opole 1983
- W. Chmielewski "World-Famous Polish Beekeeper - Dr. Jan Dzierżon (1811-1906) and his work in the centenary year of his death" in Journal of Apicultural Research, Volume 45(3), 2006