Alexander Tschirch

Alexander Tschirch (17 October 1856 – 2 December 1939) was a German-Swiss pharmacist born in Guben.

He received pharmacy training in Dresden and at the ''Berner Staatsapotheke'' (Bern state apothecary). From 1878 to 1880 he studied at the University of Berlin, earning his PhD at Freiburg in 1881, followed by a degree in botany from Berlin in 1884. In 1889–90 he took a study tour of India, Ceylon and Java. From 1890 to 1932 he was a professor of pharmacy and pharmacognosy at the University of Bern, serving as rector in 1908–09.

Tschirch is known for his studies in plant anatomy and for his research of resins and anthraquinone glycosides. He made significant contributions towards the fourth and fifth editions of the Pharmacopoeia Helvetica. He was the author of twenty books and numerous journal articles; among his written works is "''Die Harze und die Harzbehälter mit Einschluss der Milchsäfte''", a highly regarded reference book on resins and other plant extracts.

He became corresponding member of the Société de Pharmacie of Paris in 1893, honorary member of the Swiss Parmaceutical Society in 1906, and was given an honorary doctorate from the Faculty of Medicine of Berne and of the Federal Polytechnic Institute of Zurich. He received the Flückiger medal, the Hanbury medal (1907) and the Werner medal. A member of many scientific societies, he was also vice-president of the Commission de la Pharmacopée helvétique. Provided by Wikipedia