The Sowerby family was a British family of four generations of naturalists, illustrators, botanists, and zoologists.
- James Sowerby (1757 – 1822)
- James De Carle Sowerby (1787 – 1871)
- George Brettingham Sowerby I (1788 – 1854)
- George Brettingham Sowerby II (1812 – 1884)
- George Brettingham Sowerby III (1843 – 1921)
- George Brettingham Sowerby II (1812 – 1884)
- Charles Edward Sowerby (1795–1842)
- John Edward Sowerby (1825-1870)
The vast majority of their work was on molluscs and their systematics. Together, they introduced numerous (sometimes the number 5000 is mentioned) taxonomic names.
Because all three of the G.B Sowerbys published extensively on the subject of conchology, it is not easy even for professional taxonomists to unravel which of the three "G.B. Sowerbys" is meant in a particular citation when the numbering system G.B. Sowerby I, II, or III is not used. Even when a date is provided, this kind of attribution is not obvious: e.g. "Sowerby, 1870" can refer to either G.B. Sowerby II or G.B. Sowerby III.
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“Classical and romantic: private language of a family quarrel, a dead dispute over the distribution of emphasis between man and nature.”
—Cyril Connolly (1903–1974)