By Science Writing Intern Paige Bellamy
The City of Jena, cradled in a beautifully forested valley in Eastern Germany, boasts a rich history in education and research. The Friedrich Schiller University, sometimes referred to as the University of Jena, has many famous alumni and past professors including among others Karl Marx, Carl Zeiss, and Ernst Haeckel. Today, former Virginia Sea Grant (VASG) research fellow and Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS) graduate, Cindy Marin Martinez, can be added to this esteemed list.
It was at the University of Jena, in sight of the Saale River, that Ernst Haeckel studied comparative anatomy and created some of the mesmerizing illustrations found in his famous book, Kunstformen der Natur, or Art Forms of Nature. And among Haeckel’s various accomplishments was the founding of the Phyletic Museum within the University of Jena system. It focuses on the development of life and the study of organisms’ relatedness within a group. With the foundation stone laid in 1907, it now holds over 500,000 specimens.
Martinez’s work includes the identification of fish deposited in the museum by Haeckel throughout his career. These hundred-year-old fish are held in just-as-old glass jars. The pale yellow liquid slowly swirls glassy eyed specimens around as Martinez gingerly picks them up. “I’m identifying them to the lowest taxonomic level possible,” she says. “Sometimes it’s a little tricky because the specimens are old, and a little fragile. I need to treat them with a lot of love and care.”
