Peter Martin Duncan

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Peter Martin Duncan (born April 20, 1824 in Twickenham , † May 28, 1891 in Gunnersbury ) was an English paleontologist .

Life

Duncan received his training partly at the local grammar school in Twickenham and partly in Switzerland . In 1842 he began studying medicine at King's College London , and in 1846 received a Bachelor of Medicine degree . For a short time he worked as a doctor's assistant in Rochester before he went freelance as a doctor in Colchester . He practiced from 1848 to 1860, during which time he held the office of mayor for a year.

In 1860 he returned to London and worked for a few years as a doctor in Blackheath . Eventually he gave up his professional life and devoted himself entirely to scientific research. At first botany was his field of interest, but later geology and paleontology . The central object was the fossil corals , and in 1863 he presented the first of a series of essays on the fossil corals of the West Indies to the Geological Society of London , in which he described not only the species but also conclusions about the physical geography of the Tertiary pulled. Duncan expanded his work to include corals from various geological epochs and regions of the world, and gained a reputation as a leading authority in the field of fossil corals. He published work not only on fossil corals, but also on some living forms. In addition, articles appeared on the Echinoidea and other fossil and living groups. For the Palaeontographical Society he edited the group of British fossil corals, the work appeared as an appendix to the monograph by Henri Milne-Edwards and Jules Haime , which was published between 1866 and 1872. He was also the editor of six volumes in the Cassell's Natural History series (1877).

In 1868 he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society , and in 1870 he was appointed Professor of Geology at King's College. He was President of the Geological Society in 1876 and 1877, and received the Society's Wollaston Medal in 1881 .

literature

personal data
SURNAME Duncan, Peter Martin
BRIEF DESCRIPTION British paleontologist
DATE OF BIRTH April 20, 1824
PLACE OF BIRTH Twickenham
DATE OF DEATH May 28, 1891
Place of death Gunnersbury