TEICHMANN, LUDWIK KAROL

(b. Lublin, Poland, 16 September 1823; d. Cracow, Poland, 24 November 1895)

anatomy.

Teichmann’s name is associated mainly with his discovery of a simple chemical test for the presence of blood that was widely used. His parents died when Teichmann was six, and his two aunts helped him to complete his secondary education. In 1847 he enrolled at Protestant Theological Faculty at Dorpat, but soon became interested in natural science. In 1850 he was one of the seconds in a duel that ended with the death of a colleague, a circumstance that forced him to flee the country. From Hamburg he went to Heidelberg, where he entered the Faculty of Medicine in November 1850. Working as an anatomical preparator in the department headed by Jacob Henle, he also studied chemistry, physics, and technology. In 1852 he followed Henle to Göttingen, where he graduated M.D. on 18 December 1855 with the dissertation “Zur Lehre der Ganglien.” In 1853, while still a student, he published a paper on the crystallization of certain organic compounds of the blood, describing the preparation of the microscopic crystals of hemin (heme chloride). This was the first, and for some ten years the only, test for the presence of blood in suspect stains on clothes, furniture, or other objects. Because of its simplicity and specificity, it became one of the accepted tests in forensic medicine. During the same period he mastered time-consuming anatomical preparations to supply Henle with illustrations for his Handbuch der systematischen Anatomie. Henle’s failure to acknowledge Teichmann’s contributions led to a conflict.

After graduation Teichmann became provisional prosector of anatomy and was granted the Blumenbach fellowship, which allowed him to visit other European anatomical departments and meet prominent anatomists: Koelliker, Johannes Müller, Gegenbaur, A. Retzius, M. P. C. Sappey, Richard Quain, Sharpey. He was particularly well received by Joseph Hyrtl in Vienna, who helped him during an illness and encouraged him to continue his career in anatomy. Hyrtl remained Teichmann’s good friend in later years. In 1859 Teichmann obtained the venia legendi at Göttingen and in 1861 went to Cracow, where he was offered the chair of pathological anatomy. In 1868 he became professor of descriptive anatomy and retained that post until his retirement in 1894. In 1873 he opened a new anatomical theater and provided many specimens for its museum.

Teichmann’s main scientific interest was in the lymphatic vessels and their origin, which he studied by means of an original injection method. He maintained that no direct communication exists between blood capillaries and lymphatics, and discovered the obstruction of lymphatic vessels in elephantiasis.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

I. Original Works. Teichmann’s most important papers are “über die Krystallisation der organischen Bestandteile des Bluts,” in Zeitschrift für rationelle Medicin, n.s. 3 (1853), 375–388; and “über das Haematin,” ibid., n.s. 8 (1857), 141–148, in which the method of preparing hemin (heme chloride) crystals is described. Das Saugadersystem vom anatomischen Standpunkte (Leipzig, 1861) is his main publication on the lymphatic system. In later years Teichmann is reported to have published 30 papers (in Polish and German) on the lymphatics and others on anatomical techniques. No bibliography of his works seems to have been published.

II. Secondary Literature. A biographical sketch based on Teichmann’s handwritten autobiography is Leon Wachholz, “Ludwik Teichmann, szkic biograficzno-historyczny,” in Archiwum historji i filozofji medycyny, 10 (1930), 34–62, summarized in English by A. Laskiewicz, “Professor Ludwik Karol Teichmann, M.D. 1823–1895,” in Bulletin of Polish Medical Science and History, 8 (1965), 91–92. See also F. Lejars, “Un grand anatomiste polonais Ludwig Teichmann,” in Revue scientifique (Revue rose), 4th ser., 5 (1896), 481–487.

Vladislav Kruta