Oscar Klement

Oscar Anton Carl Klement (19 April 1897 – 16 February 1980) was a German Bohemian lichenologist. His contributions to lichenology include numerous botanical and zoological classifications, extensive research, and publications.

Klement's career spanned multiple disciplines, starting as a clerk and rising to directorship in . His passion for nature led him to create personal botanical and zoological collections and make substantial contributions to botanical literature from the 1930s onwards. Introduced to lichenology by Josef Anders, Klement compiled a herbarium containing about 20,000 specimens and wrote nearly 100 titles related to floristic records, some of which were studies on lichens. Despite significant challenges due to political upheaval post-World War II, Klement continued his lichenological research, and his work influenced the field in Germany and Austria. Many lichen species and varieties have been named in his honour.

Life and career Oscar Klement was born on 19 April 1897 in Chomutov in Bohemia, Austria-Hungary, near the Czech-German border, to a family of German carpenters. Completing his primary education in Chomutov, his parents sent him to Most to learn trade. His initial career path began at sixteen as a clerk at a local chocolate factory. As World War I commenced, he volunteered for the Austro-Hungarian Navy, as a merchant ship officer. In 1921, Klement joined 's Chomutov branch as an accountant, serving as the company's commercial representative in Romania between 1935 and 1936.