Carl Linnaeus desk donated to Uppsala University

The desk is one of three known to have belonged to Carl Linnaeus. It was acquired in 2019 by the Kjell and Märta Beijer Foundation, and the Foundation has now donated it as a gift to Uppsala University.

“A desk is a place for work and reflection. It’s breathtaking to know that Linnaeus once worked at this desk, which will now find its home in the University Library. This brings the desk to rest in the city and at the university where its first owner Carl Linnaeus once worked,” says Anders Wall, Chair of the Beijer Foundation. He and the Foundation’s Director, Cecilia Wikstrom will formally hand over the desk to Uppsala University’s Vice-Chancellor Anders Hagfeldt.

“We are deeply grateful for this fabulous gift to Uppsala University. This desk will become yet another part of the University’s important Linnaeus heritage, which is of interest to visitors and researchers alike from all over the world. Linnaeus put Uppsala on the map during his time, which probably meant a great deal because life science is still one of our very strong research areas,” says Anders Hagfeldt, Vice-Chancellor of Uppsala University.

The desk will be placed in the University Library’s Carolina Rediviva/Carolina Library.

Anders Wall, Chair of the Beijer Foundation, Cecilia Wikstrom, Director of Foundation, Anders Hagfeldt, Vice-Chancellor of Uppsala University, Lars Burman, Chief Librarian at Uppsala University Library and Johan Cederlund, Museum Director of the Zorn Museum attended the reception.