Edgar von Harold

German entomologist (1830–1886)

Edgar von Harold
Born	(1830-05-30)30 May 1830 Munich, Kingdom of Bavaria, German Confederation
Died	1 August 1886(1886-08-01) (aged 56)
Known for	Catalogus Coleopterorum

Baron Edgar von Harold (30 May 1830 – 1 August 1886)^[1] was an influential Scarabaeidae expert and entomologist who was active in the 19th century.^[2]

Biography

Edgar von Harold was born in Munich to a German family with Irish origins. He completed his early education at the court of the Bavarian King from where he graduated in the year 1848.^[2] In 1848 Harold joined the Royal Guard of the King of Bavaria where he would serve for twenty years. During this period he participated in the Austro-Prussian War and the Franco-Prussian War. At the end of his military career, Harold was sent on a trip to the coast of Spain and Morocco, to study the local insect fauna. After his retirement from the Royal Guard, Harold devoted his time fully to entomology.^[1]

One of the major contributions by Harold to the field is said to be the Catalogus Coleopterorum,^[3] which he co-authored with his friend Max Gemminger.^[1] They started the work in 1868 and the last volume of the work was published in 1876.

References

^ ^a ^b ^c Mario Cupello (July 2020). "The discovery of Edgar von Harold type material in the Museum of Zoology, Dresden". Scarabaeus (1): 15–24. ISSN 2693-2245. Wikidata Q107145159.
^ ^a ^b "BARON EDGAR VON HAROLD". unsm-ento.unl.edu. Retrieved 2021-06-07.
^ Gemminger, Max; Harold, Edgar (1868). Catalogus coleopterorum hucusque descriptorum synonymicus et systematicus. Vol. 1. Monachii: sumptu E.H. Gummi.