Background
He was the son of the bookseller, historian and publisher, Casparus Commelijn and his first wife, Margrieta Heydanus.
He was the son of the bookseller, historian and publisher, Casparus Commelijn and his first wife, Margrieta Heydanus.
He enrolled on 12 September 1692 at Leiden as a student of medicine and graduated on 27 February 1694 with a dissertation De lumbricis ("About earthworms", Ludg Bat 1694).
After graduation, he settled in his birthplace. When Peter Hotton departed for Leiden in 1696, Caspar was appointed to the post of botanist at the Hortus. Ruysch arranged for the city of Amsterdam to finance the publication.
In 1703, he published a work on the systematics of rare exotic plants.
In 1706, he was appointed as professor at the Athenaeum Illustre. Frederik Ruysch and Commelin divided the work, so that Ruysch dealt with the indigenous plants, and Commelijn the exotics.
January Commelin, based his work on the taxonomic system devised by John Ray. In 1724, Caspar Commelin, while an inspector at the Collegium Medicum, had his portrait painted by Cornelis Troost.
The painting is to be seen at the Amsterdams Historisch Museum.
On his death, he was succeeded by Johannes Burman.
German Academy of Sciences Leopoldina.