Carl Linnaeus

The world is a magnificent library, and its books are the works of nature.

The stone that is rolling can gather no moss.

All things are ordered and numbered.

The species are the work of the divine power, and the genera are the work of the human mind.

I do not know what I may appear to the world, but to myself I seem to have been only like a boy playing on the seashore, and diverting myself in now and then finding a smoother pebble or a prettier shell than ordinary, whilst the great ocean of truth lay all undiscovered before me.

The most beautiful flowers are those that are most useful.

The species are as many as were created in the beginning by the Infinite Being.

I have never seen a plant that was not beautiful.

The names of things are the first step to knowledge.

The whole creation is a manifestation of God's wisdom and power.

Every plant is a book, and every flower a page.

The true naturalist is one who loves nature for its own sake.

The greatest pleasure of a naturalist is to discover new species.

The sexual system is the most natural system.

The human species is divided into four varieties, namely, American, European, Asiatic, and African.

I have not seen a more beautiful flower than the Linnaea borealis, which bears my name.

The purpose of classification is to make the study of nature easier.

The study of nature is the most noble of all studies.

The most important thing is to know what you are talking about.

The world is full of wonders, and we are only beginning to discover them.