Richard Waller (d. 1715)

etching by T. Murray, based on a painting by Godfrey Kneller (1711)

Richard Waller (d. 1715) was an English naturalist, translator and illustrator, long-time member and secretary of the Royal Society.

Nothing is known about his early life (older reports of a birth in Horsham and a bachelor's degree from Christ College 1667 were due to a confusion with another person of the same name). He became a member of the Royal Society on 27 April 1681, acting as secretary from 1691 to 1693, and again from 1710 to 1714, and member of its council from 1686 to 1699. Waller edited the Philosophical Transactions from 1691 to 1693, also acting as translator for submissions from abroad.

His Essays of Natural Experiments, a translation of the collection of essays Saggi di naturali esperienze of the Accademia del Cimento is one of the important early publications by the Royal Society. The archive of the Royal Society also holds a number of plant illustrations by Waller, possibly intended for a publication by John Ray. In 1705, Waller posthumously edited a number of works by Robert Hooke with a short biography. Waller most likely died at his residence in Northaw, Hertfordshire, at some point between 23 December 1714 and 13 January 1715.

Bibliography

Philosophical Transactions
as translator
as editor

References

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