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Sigmund Zois Freiherr von Edelstein, usually referred as Sigmund Zois (, formerly Slovenized as Cojs or Cojz; ) (23 November 1747 – 10 November 1819) was a nobleman, natural scientist and patronage. He is considered one of the most influential figures of the Enlightenment Era in the Slovene Lands of Habsburg Austria.
The Carniolan noble family Kappus von Pichelstein on Zois's mother's side was a prosperous family that had lived at Kamna Gorica in Upper Carniola for centuries, where the family had owned an iron foundry and an iron mine since the late Middle Ages, perhaps since the 12th century. Marcus Antonius Kappus von Pichelstein (1657–1717) worked as a Jesuit missionary in Sonora. From there he wrote letters to his friends in Vienna and to his relatives in Carniola. In these letters he described discoveries by research expeditions in Arizona and California and described the living conditions, the climate, and other details. Carolus Josephus Kappus von Pichelstein, a nephew of Marcus Antonius, was member of the Academia Operosorum, which was founded in Ljubljana in 1693 after the example of similar academies in Italy. Vladimir Kappus von Pichelstein (1885–1943), a Slovene writer and publisher, was also from the Kappus family. He was killed in May 1943 by communist Partisans. Carinthia I.: Mitteilungen des Geschichtsvereins für Kärnten, 2008, p. 695. "Auch Vladimir Kappus v. Pichelstein, Poet und letzter Nachkomme seines adeligen Stammes kündigte im Jahr 1942 stolz an, dass er 'in den Wald' – zu den Partisanen – geht, um gegen die Deutschen zu kämpfen. Gleich bei seiner Ankunft wurde er in das 'XIII. Bataillon' verlegt, weil er national war. Das 'XIII. Bataillon' war der Ort, an dem die getöteten Männer von Witwen ihre letzte Ruhe fanden, ein Ausdruck, um naive Witwen vor er Realität des Mörders zu schützen. 'Kappus ließ man unbeerdigt liegen. Die Leiche wurde den Füchsen zum Fraß überlassen."
In Ljubljana, Zois initiated and sponsored the construction of roads, the foundation of the botanical garden and a (German) theatre (whose main shareholder he became) and the enlargement of the lyceal library. His great commitment in sciences contrasted in neglecting the needs of the farmers on his estates, who waged surrection in 1783 and were oppressed by Zois' managers. Only after the French Revolution he ordered obligation towards his subjects, fearing for his properties.
In 1784, Zois was visited by the French geologist and mineralogist Déodat Gratet de Dolomieu. From 1797 onwards, Sigmund Zois used a wheelchair and didn't leave his mansion in Ljubljana anymore.
The literary opus of Sigmund Zois, of modest quality and little influence, includes many literary forms and genres, ranging from arias for the opera to lyrics for folk music, although probably only a minor part of his work has been preserved. His translation of the poem Lenore by Gottfried August Burger was regarded as a complete failure, and Zois himself later came to the conclusion that Slovene was "too mediocre and rough" to allow for such a literary achievement. He would be disproven only some decades later by France Prešeren who managed to compose a complex and exceptional translation of the same poem. Zois is also regarded as a father of Slovene literary criticism, and most of his literary reviews can be found in his correspondence with Valentin Vodnik.
Zois, who was considered to have been the wealthiest Carniolan of his time, died in Ljubljana. His funeral was attended by a huge crowd; to these days, it has been considered one of the biggest funeral ceremonies ever held in the city, together with Anton Aškerc's funeral in 1912, and Janez Evangelist Krek's funeral in 1917.
He was also involved in botany and zoology. His ornithology writings, particularly Nomenclatura carniolica, contain the first records of Slovene names of the majority of the birds living in Carniola and were the foundation for the Slovene ornithological nomenclature. He supported the work of his brother, the botanist Karl Zois, who, among other things, discovered the Campanula zoysii, a previously unknown Carniolan flower.
The highest national scientific award in Slovenia, as well as a state-founded scholarship for talented students, are named after him.
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