Gaetano Giorgio Gemmellaro (24 February 1832, in Catania – 16 March 1904, in Palermo) was an Italian geologist, paleontologist and politician. Gaetano_Giorgio_Gemmellaro

Biography

Gemmellaro was the son of

Carlo Gemmellaro Carlo Gemmellaro (1787-1866) was an Italian naturalist and geologist. He was noted for his studies on the vulcanology of his native Sicily. His son Gaetano Giorgio Gemmellaro was a noted geologist, paleontologist and politician, who served as ...

, a teacher of geology at the

University of Catania The University of Catania ( it, Università degli Studi di Catania) is a university located in Catania, Sicily. Founded in 1434, it is the oldest university in Sicily, the 13th oldest in Italy, and the 29th oldest university in the world. With a ...

. He studied medicine, specialising in ophthalmology at the

University of Naples Federico II The University of Naples Federico II ( it, Università degli Studi di Napoli Federico II) is a public university in Naples, Italy. Founded in 1224, it is the oldest public non-sectarian university in the world, and is now organized into 26 depar ...

. Here he met Arcangelo Scacchi, who introduced him to natural sciences, specifically geology and mineralogy, disciplines in which Gemmellaro published a series of memoirs. In 1858, he was appointed special professor of geology and mineralogy at the University of Catania. During this time, he met the English geologist

Charles Lyell Sir Charles Lyell, 1st Baronet, (14 November 1797 – 22 February 1875) was a Scottish geologist who demonstrated the power of known natural causes in explaining the earth's history. He is best known as the author of ''Principles of Geolo ...

, who employed Gemmellaro to study the stratigraphy of the Etna lava, in exchange for two publications in the annals of the Geological Society of London. In 1860, he was commissioned by the British Government to conduct geological surveys of the Canary Islands. During the trip, however, learning of Giuseppe Garibaldi's landing in Sicily, he decided to return promptly, to join the Garibaldi and take part in the Palermo clashes with his brother Ferdinando. This experience resulted, in the same year, in political and academic positions, in that Antonio Mordini, pro-dictator of Sicily, appointed him Secretary of State for Public Education and full professor of the

University of Palermo The University of Palermo ( it, Università degli Studi di Palermo) is a university located in Palermo, Italy, and founded in 1806. It is organized in 12 Faculties. History The University of Palermo was officially founded in 1806, although its ...

. Gemmellaro created the first university collection of geology and paleontology by founding, in 1866, the museum which today bears his name. He discovered layers of paleozoic fossils in the Sosio river valley, which proved useful for reconstructing the genetic link of the ammonites, in comparison with similar material from Tibet, Texas and the Alps. He was rector of the Palermo university from 1874 to 1876 and, again, from 1881 to 1883. President of the Italian Geological Society in 1891, Gemmellaro was appointed senator in 1892. Gemmellaro married Maria Pantaleo, with whom on 18 December 1879 he had a son, Mariano, who died early in 1921 after following in his father's footsteps at the University of Palermo.

Publications

*''Sul graduale sollevamento di una parte della costa di Sicilia dal Simeto all'Onobola'', XIV (1858), pp. 504–508 (in ''Atti dell'Acc. Gioenia in Catania'', s. 2, XIV

859 __FORCETOC__ Year 859 (Roman numerals, DCCCLIX) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * January 15 – Battle of St. Quentin: Frankish forces, le ...

pp. 87–98) *''Sulle conchiglie fossili del Turoniano e Senoniano di Catenanuova e di Turcisi'' (in ''Giornale dell'Acc. Gioenia in Catania'', n.s., V

p. 63) *''Sopra due nuovi generi di Brachiopodi provenienti dai calcari con fusulina della provincia di Palermo'' / per Gaetano Giorgio Gemmellaro.
full text of book at Biodiversity Heritage Library
*La fauna dei calcari con Fusulina della valle del fiume Sosio nella provincia de Palermo. By Gemmellaro, Gaetano Giorgio, 1832–1904.
Full text of book at Biodiversity Heritage Library

Related items

affiliated with the University of Palermo.

External links

Correspondence with Charles Lyell, a
University of Edinburgh archives

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gemmellaro, Gaetano Giorgio 1832 births 1904 deaths 19th-century Italian geologists Italian paleontologists