The arachnology section is founded on a long-standing tradition of the Senckenberg museum. In the year 1833 the Senckenbergische Naturforschende Gesellschaft’ obtained the collection of Karl Friedrich Wider. Since then arachnology developed in Frankfurt into a centre for Germany and Europe. In a worldwide comparison Senckenberg is listed together with important museums such as the American Museum of Natural History in New York.
The activity of Senckenberg in the field of arachnology is almost as old as the Senckenberg Society itself, which was founded in 1817. First it was Karl Friedrich Wider, a priest in Beerfelden (Odenwald, Germany), who dealt with native (German) spiders since 1825. His important collection, his numerous drawings and manuscripts were acquired by the Senckenberg Society in 1833. In the following year, 1834, the medical doctor Adolph Reuss published the seemingly important parts of Wider’s manuscripts and thus made a substantial contribution to the first Senckenberg publication (Museum Senckenbergianum, 1). Many names of the herein described species are still valid and are commonly used by every arachnologist. Wider’s collection is almost completely preserved, – in contrast to most collections of his contemporaries.
