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The achievements of Warkworth botanist Lucy Moore (1906-1987) are being celebrated in the latest stamp issue from NZ Post, called Women in Science.
Mākereti Papakura, Joan Wiffen, Beatrice Hill Tinsley and Moore are all featured, and recognised for their achievements in the scientific fields of ethnography, palaeontology, cosmology and botany in the 20th century.
They are seen as trailblazers in their fields during a time when institutional and societal structures often made things difficult for women in science.
As a lifelong tramper, mountaineer and beachcomber, Moore’s interest in the natural world was supported by her family and encouraged at Epsom Girls Grammar School, where she met her friend and collaborator Lucy Cranwell.
Known as one of the ‘Two Lucies’ by classmates at Auckland University College, Moore initially struggled to find employment in science, working as a demonstrator and tutor. She eventually started in the botany division of the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research (DSIR) in 1938, focusing on weeds, algae and fungi.
She edited several groundbreaking works of taxonomy and continued this work after her retirement from the DSIR in 1971, producing The Oxford Book of New Zealand Plants in 1978.
Her meticulously detailed reference works are still regularly picked up by New Zealand scientists, gardeners and nature lovers.
Moore was selected for the stamp issue by Kate Hannah and Rebecca Priestley, who have both done research and written about women scientists.
