On 15 June 2022 the exhibition “Biological and cultural diversity of Panama” was opened in the JU Botanical Garden by the JU Vice-Rector for Research Prof. Piotr Kuśtrowski and the Ambassador of Panama to Poland Javier Bonagas. The exhibition marks the 210th anniversary of the birth of Józef Warszewicz, an eminent 19th-century botanist, expert on tropical flora.
The ceremony participants were welcomed by the head of the JU Botanical Garden Prof. Michał Węgrzyn. Following the official opening of the exhibition, they laid wreaths at Józef Warszewicz’s statue and took a tour of the JU Botanical Garden, with special focus on plants related to his life and work.
The exhibition at the JU Botanical Garden provides glimpses into the culture, history, and biodiversity of Panama, thanks to photographs made by Panamese indigenous people. It also includes items from a collection of unique Mola textiles, which are part of the traditional women’s clothing of Kuna people.
The exhibition marks the 210th anniversary of the birth of Józef Warszewicz (1812-1866), a distinguished botanist and traveller, expert on tropical flora, who studied plants in Central and South America, discovering about 300 new orchid species. In 1854-1866 he was the inspector (head gardener) of the JU Botanical Garden in Kraków.
