[2] The type strain of Amycolatopsis rifamycinica (DSM 46095) has been reclassified several times.

When it was first isolated from a French soil sample in 1957, it was identified as Streptomyces mediterranei.

[3] In 1969, the species was renamed Nocardia mediterranei because its cell wall was thought to resemble that of Nocardia species.

[4] The species was renamed Amycolatopsis mediterranei in 1986 after finding that it is not susceptible to Nocardia phage and has a cell wall that lacks mycolic acid.

[5] Finally, in 2004, it was determined that strain DSM 46095 represented a new species, independent of Amycolatopsis mediterranei, based on 16S ribosomal RNA sequencing.