Gaetano Giorgio Gemmellaro
Gaetano Giorgio Gemmellaro (born February 25, 1832 in Catania , † March 16, 1904 in Palermo ) was an Italian paleontologist and geologist .
He was the son of the geologist Carlo Gemmellaro . Gaetano G. Gemmellaro came from a family of natural scientists. He became familiar with the natural sciences during his childhood and came into contact with scientists. After studying medicine in Catania, he went to Naples for further training , where he met the Italian paleontologist Archangelo Scacchi , with whom he remained lifelong friends and who greatly inspired his future work.
The physician discovered his passion for geology and helped his seriously ill father Carlo Gemmellaro teach geology and paleontology. After becoming known through various publications, he was appointed professor of natural sciences and successor to Pietro Calcara at the University of Palermo in 1860 . In the Institute, which was then housed in a building of Theatines in the Via Maqueda was he systematized in decades of work, the extensive collections of fossils and minerals , which the Conte had left Airoli. In 1861 Gaetano G. Gemmellaro founded the Geological Museum of the University of Palermo. He maintained contact with the British Museum in London and had contact with the leading scientists of his time, including the English geologist and representative of the then modern geology Charles Lyell .
His achievements also included the discovery of a unique limestone, called Pietra di Salomone, in the valley of the Sosio , about which he also wrote a book, his research on the extinct Sicilian pygmy elephants , the discovery of human skeletons around 11,000 years old in the San Teodoro grotto near Messina, leading an expedition into the caves north of Palermo.
Gemmellaro researched and published various texts, e.g. T. are still of importance today, including Monografia sul Titanico and Fauna dei calcari con Fusulina della Valle del Sosio .
From 1874 to 1876 and from 1880 to 1883 he was rector of the University of Palermo. Until shortly before his death in 1904 he was director of the museum that today bears his name. Because of his merits, he was appointed Senator of the Kingdom of Italy in 1892 . In 1889 he was elected a member of the Leopoldina .
literature
- Pietro Corsi: Gemmellaro, Gaetano Giorgio. In: Mario Caravale (ed.): Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani (DBI). Volume 53: Gelati – Ghisalberti. Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana, Rome 1999.
Web links
- Correspondence with Lyell
- Gaetano G. Gemmellaro in the Palermo Biographical Archive
- Museo Gemmellaro on the University of Palermo website
- Page to the Italian Senate
Individual evidence
- ↑ Member entry of Gætano Giorgio Gemmellaro at the German Academy of Sciences Leopoldina , accessed on December 31, 2016.
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Gemmellaro, Giorgio Gaetano |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Italian geologist and paleontologist |
| DATE OF BIRTH | February 25, 1832 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Catania |
| DATE OF DEATH | March 16, 1904 |
| Place of death | Palermo |