THE DISCOVERY OF CHROMATOGRAPHY AND THE IMPERIAL ST. PETERSBURG ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

The article reveals the role of the Laboratory of Plant Anatomy and Physiology of the Academy of Sciences created by Academician A.S. Famintsyn in the birth and development of the idea of the chromatographic method of analysis by M.S. Tsvet in 1897- 1901. On the basis of previously unknown documentary and other materials it is established that M.S. Tsvet in fact discovered chromatography in 1901, and not in 1903, as it is commonly believed, and not in Warsaw, but in St. Petersburg, and in many respects thanks to the assistance of the academic community and first of all academician A.S. Famintsyn. The data on the establishment and activities of the Laboratory, on the life and creative pursuits of M.S. Tsvet in St. Petersburg, on his communication with colleagues and on the attitude of the Academy of Sciences staff to his works are presented.