Mosaics from the heritage of ELTE – August 2024

Object of the month – Károly Than memorial plaque

The plaque depicts the facing bust of Károly Than (1834–1908) with a mustache and beard in old age. The man is wearing a suit, around his neck is the insignia of the Pro litteris et artibus civil award, founded by Ferenc József in 1887.

Inscription below the bust: „-THAN-”. In the lower right corner is the master's mark of the creator, Miklós Farkas. One-sided, rectangular bronze plaque from the material of the University Library and Archives - University History Collection.

Károly Than was a chemist, a member of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences and a teacher at the Budapest University (today ELTE) from 1860 until his retirement in 1908. Between 1872 and 1880 he was the president of the Royal Hungarian Society of Natural Sciences, one of his significant achievements was in the field of analytical chemistry, and the concept of Than's equivalent can be linked to his name.

Source/author of illustration: ELTE University Library and Archives – University History Collection