Definition: Russian biologist Nikolai Vavilov studied plant genetics and provided much of the background research on which early theories on the origins of agriculture were based. Trained at Cambridge under William Bateson, Vavilov was long associated with Saratov University, and with the Soviet government's Bureau for Applied Botany. His 1926 book, Centers of Origins of Cultivated Plants was used by many of the early agricultural theorists; later studies have argued that the process was more complicated than is outlined in Vavilov's book.
Vavilov fell to the political climate of the USSR in the 1930s and in 1940 he was imprisoned in Saratov Prison, where he died three years later.
This glossary entry is part of the Dictionary of Archaeology. Sources for the term include the references listed on the front page of the Dictionary, and the websites listed in the sidebar.
Vavilov fell to the political climate of the USSR in the 1930s and in 1940 he was imprisoned in Saratov Prison, where he died three years later.
This glossary entry is part of the Dictionary of Archaeology. Sources for the term include the references listed on the front page of the Dictionary, and the websites listed in the sidebar.
