Georgius Agricola, born on 24
March 1494, in Glauchau, Saxony [Germany], was a German scholar and
scientist known as “the father of mineralogy.” While a highly educated
classicist and humanist, well regarded by scholars of his own and later times,
he was yet singularly independent of the theories of ancient
authorities. He was indeed among the first to find a natural science upon
observation, as opposed to speculation. His De re metallica dealt
chiefly with the arts of mining and smelting, and his De natura fossilium,
considered the first mineralogy textbook, presented the first scientific
classification of minerals (based on their physical properties) and
described many new minerals and their occurrence and mutual relationships.
