When was friedrich mohs born

Scientist of the Day - Friedrich Mohs January 29, Nov Dec Apr 7. View Calendar. Filed under: Announcements , Minerals on January 29th, You must be logged in to post a comment. Mini Me Geology Blog About. Happy Birthday Friedrich Mohs! You might also like:. In he moved to Graz where he was employed by Archduke Johann in his newly established museum and science academy, which was subsequently divided into the Joanneum and the Graz University of Technology.

Mineral properties Memorial plaque in Vienna As part of this task, he started classifying minerals by their physical characteristics, in spite of their chemical composition, as had been done traditionally. This emphasis on physical characteristics was at odds with the prevailing chemical systematics. However, both Theophrastus and Pliny the Elder had compared the relative hardness of minerals known to them in the ancient world, including diamond and quartz.

They knew that diamond could scratch quartz, so showing it to be harder. This became the basis of the hardness scale developed by Mohs. Minerals are now classified by chemical characteristics, but the physical properties are still useful in field examination. In , Mohs became a professor in Graz , and moved six years later to Freiberg, Saxony , before finally settling down to practice his profession in Vienna in Mohs died during a trip to Agordo , Italy in , at the age of Geology Wiki Explore.