Armen Takhtajan (1910-2009)

Armen Leonovich Takhtajan or Takhtajian (Russian: Армен Леонович Тахтаджян; surname also transliterated Takhtadjan or Takhtadzhian) (June 10, 1910 - November 13, 2009), was a Soviet-Armenian botanist, one of the most important figures in 20th century plant evolution and systematics and biogeography. His other interests included morphology of flowering plants, paleobotany, and the flora of the Caucasus. (Wikipedia entry)

I had the privilege of meeting Professor Takhtajan once. He was kind, generous, and extraordinarily knowledgeable. His phylogenetic system has been largely superseded by work of the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group, but his influence will never be forgotten. He died on 13 November, and he will be buried in the Armenian part of the Smolensk cemetery in St. Petersburg tomorrow after a civil funeral at the Komarov Botanical Institute.