13
Scheele in Uppsala
It was probably in order to get better access to a laboratory that Scheele moved to
Uppsala in 1770. Others have suggested that it was in order to get into contact with
Bergman and the University, but given the fact that Bergman had rejected the
papers he had submitted to the Academy in Stockholm, and that it would take some
effort to persuade Scheele to visit Bergman, it appears less likely. According to
Wilcke/Sjöstén, Scheele moved to Uppsala in the autumn, [1] and this was generally accepted until Boklund investigated the matter in 1959 [2]. On August 6,
1770, Scheele signed a letter to Johan Gottlieb Gahn (more of him latter) in
Uppsala. In the introduction of the letter, Scheele thanks Gahn for two previous
letters, the first of which had been delayed at the post office since the staff did not
know Scheele’s address. Consequently, Scheele must have arrived in Uppsala at
latest in the summer, more probably in the spring. Another clue is the chemical
notes written by Gahn after his first meeting with Scheele, which are marked “Year
1770, in the spring” (although added in red ink, possibly at a latter point), but it is
more likely that Scheele moved to Uppsala in spring than the autumn of 1770.
A last piece of evidence is that Gahn took his degree on June 23, and probably left
Uppsala soon after. On August 6, Gahn wrote to Bergman that he was still in Falun,
indicating that he had been there for some time [3].
Scheele was hired by Christian Ludvig Lokk (1718–1800) at the Arms of
Upland pharmacy (Uplands Wapen; Figs. 13.1 and 13.2). It was Lokk himself who
established Arms of Upland in 1756. It was located in a wooden two-storey
building at Stora torget (Great Square; see Fig. 4.1) and was the second pharmacy
in Uppsala; the first pharmacy, Kronan (The Crown) belonged to the University. In
1868, the pharmacy changed its name to The Lion (Lejonet), after the name of the
block where it was located, but it would remain in the same building until it was
demolished in 1960 to give place for a department store. This building was, in turn,
stripped down to its concrete frame in 2015 and rebuilt.
Lokk was German, as were so many other Swedish apothecaries. He was born in
Hinter-Pommern and educated in Prussian Königsberg (present day Kaliningrad
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020
A. Lennartson, Carl Wilhelm Scheele and Torbern Bergman, Perspectives on the
History of Chemistry, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-49194-9_13
193
Scheele in Uppsala
It was probably in order to get better access to a laboratory that Scheele moved to
Uppsala in 1770. Others have suggested that it was in order to get into contact with
Bergman and the University, but given the fact that Bergman had rejected the
papers he had submitted to the Academy in Stockholm, and that it would take some
effort to persuade Scheele to visit Bergman, it appears less likely. According to
Wilcke/Sjöstén, Scheele moved to Uppsala in the autumn, [1] and this was generally accepted until Boklund investigated the matter in 1959 [2]. On August 6,
1770, Scheele signed a letter to Johan Gottlieb Gahn (more of him latter) in
Uppsala. In the introduction of the letter, Scheele thanks Gahn for two previous
letters, the first of which had been delayed at the post office since the staff did not
know Scheele’s address. Consequently, Scheele must have arrived in Uppsala at
latest in the summer, more probably in the spring. Another clue is the chemical
notes written by Gahn after his first meeting with Scheele, which are marked “Year
1770, in the spring” (although added in red ink, possibly at a latter point), but it is
more likely that Scheele moved to Uppsala in spring than the autumn of 1770.
A last piece of evidence is that Gahn took his degree on June 23, and probably left
Uppsala soon after. On August 6, Gahn wrote to Bergman that he was still in Falun,
indicating that he had been there for some time [3].
Scheele was hired by Christian Ludvig Lokk (1718–1800) at the Arms of
Upland pharmacy (Uplands Wapen; Figs. 13.1 and 13.2). It was Lokk himself who
established Arms of Upland in 1756. It was located in a wooden two-storey
building at Stora torget (Great Square; see Fig. 4.1) and was the second pharmacy
in Uppsala; the first pharmacy, Kronan (The Crown) belonged to the University. In
1868, the pharmacy changed its name to The Lion (Lejonet), after the name of the
block where it was located, but it would remain in the same building until it was
demolished in 1960 to give place for a department store. This building was, in turn,
stripped down to its concrete frame in 2015 and rebuilt.
Lokk was German, as were so many other Swedish apothecaries. He was born in
Hinter-Pommern and educated in Prussian Königsberg (present day Kaliningrad
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020
A. Lennartson, Carl Wilhelm Scheele and Torbern Bergman, Perspectives on the
History of Chemistry, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-49194-9_13
193