Famous French Mineralogists

Charles Friedel was a French chemist and mineralogist. He studied under famed chemist and microbiologist  Louis Pasteur at the Sorbonne. He later obtained the post of professor of chemistry and mineralogy at the Sorbonne. He collaborated with James Crafts to develop the Friedel-Crafts alkylation and acylation reactions. His son Georges also became a renowned mineralogist. 

Best known for exploring the geology of the Tertiary Period, Alexandre Brongniart initially taught natural history and then became a professor of mineralogy. He also worked for the development of porcelain enameling in France. His other works include a classification of reptiles and the introduction of geologic dating.

While Louis-Jean-Marie Daubenton was sent to Paris to study theology, he ended up studying medicine instead and later became a pioneering naturalist. He taught natural history and zoology and contributed immensely to the domains of comparative anatomy and paleontology. He also contributed to Georges Buffon’s Histoire naturelle.

Apart from recognizing the volcanic nature of central France’s Auvergne district, French geologist and mineralogist Jean-Étienne Guettard also wrote extensively on the geological aspects of the terrains of France and England. He was the first to make a geological survey of France and study the Paris Basin bedrock.