Camper, Pieter

a Dutch physician and anatomist, B. at Leyden, 1722. Having lost his parents at the age of 26, he visited England, France, and Germany, where he cultivated the acquaintance of men of letters. To the study of medicine he united that of many other sciences, and cultivated a taste for the fine arts. He designed, painted, and modelled with exactne and elegance; but he excelled in the study of philosophy and natural history. His works on these subjects are in 6 vols. 8vo., enriched with over 100 folio plates. D. 1789. Camper down, a village of Holland, on the North Sea, 22 m. from Amsterdam. It gives its name to the victory obtained off its coast by Admiral Duncan over the Dutch fleet, Oct. 11, 1797. Campes'tral, Campestrian, a. [Lat. campestris, from campus.] Pertaining to an open field; growing in a field or open ground. "But the campestral , or wild beech, is blacker and more durable." Mortimer.