Airy Shaw, Herbert Kenneth (1902–1985)

Born on 7 April 1902 in Suffolk, England, died 19th August 1985, aged 83.

Notable English botanist and classicist.

His father served as Second Master at the Woodbridge Grammar School and his mother descended from George Biddell Airy, Astronomer Royal (1835-1881). In 1921 he entered Corpus Christi College, Cambridge University, to read classics, but he switched to natural sciences, taking his degree in 1924 and finishing in 1925, then taking a position at Kew Gardens:

He became Acting Principal Scientific Officer at the end of 1948 and an expert on tropical Asian botany and on entomology. Some special projects were a compilation of Russian botanical terms, the family Euphorbiaceae, Index Kewensis, and the preparation of the 7th edition of 'Willis'. He had a period of absence from Kew from 1952-1958 to pursue private Christian activities.

Source: Extracted from: Kew Bulletin, Vol.42 No.1, 1987, with photo

Australian collecting localities for 'Airy Shaw, H.K.' from AVH (2024)

Data from 21 specimens in Australian herbaria.