The list of species named after him is long. His contributions to the foundations of modern science are inestimable. German naturalist and explorer ALEXANDER VON HUMBOLDT (1769-1859) was called by Charles Darwin "the greatest traveling scientist who ever lived" and by Thomas Jefferson "the most important scientist whom I have met."
From 1799 to 1804, Von Humboldt traveled with French botanist AIMÉ JACQUES ALEXANDRE BONPLAND (1773-1858) in Latin America, the first exploration from a scientific perspective of this vital region of the planet, and afterward, they produced this groundbreaking three-volume work, which introduced Europeans to this previously mysterious land. First published in French in 1807, this is a replica of an 1851 English-language edition.
In Volume III, the explorers visit Spanish Guiana and "El Dorado," journey across Colombia, contrast the population of the West India islands with that of "the New Continent," discuss the politics of Cuba, and more.