Karl Wilhelm Georg von Fritsch (11 November 1838, in

Weimar Weimar is a city in the state of Thuringia, Germany. It is located in Central Germany between Erfurt in the west and Jena in the east, approximately southwest of Leipzig, north of Nuremberg and west of Dresden. Together with the neighbouri ...

– 9 January 1906) was a German

geologist A geologist is a scientist who studies the solid, liquid, and gaseous matter that constitutes Earth and other terrestrial planets, as well as the processes that shape them. Geologists usually study geology, earth science, or geophysics, althou ...

and

paleontologist Paleontology (), also spelled palaeontology or palæontology, is the scientific study of life that existed prior to, and sometimes including, the start of the Holocene epoch (roughly 11,700 years before present). It includes the study of fossi ...

. He studied

forestry Forestry is the science and craft of creating, managing, planting, using, conserving and repairing forests, woodlands, and associated resources for human and environmental benefits. Forestry is practiced in plantations and natural stands. Th ...

at the academy in

Eisenach Eisenach () is a town in Thuringia, Germany with 42,000 inhabitants, located west of Erfurt, southeast of Kassel and northeast of Frankfurt. It is the main urban centre of western Thuringia and bordering northeastern Hessian regions, situat ...

, followed by studies in

natural sciences Natural science is one of the branches of science concerned with the description, understanding and prediction of natural phenomena, based on empirical evidence from observation and experimentation. Mechanisms such as peer review and repeatab ...

at the

University of Göttingen The University of Göttingen, officially the Georg August University of Göttingen, (german: Georg-August-Universität Göttingen, known informally as Georgia Augusta) is a public research university in the city of Göttingen, Germany. Founded ...

, where he obtained his degree in 1862. Following graduation, he embarked on a scientific journey to

Madeira ) , anthem = ( en, "Anthem of the Autonomous Region of Madeira") , song_type = Regional anthem , image_map=EU-Portugal_with_Madeira_circled.svg , map_alt=Location of Madeira , map_caption=Location of Madeira , subdivision_type=Sovereign st ...

and the

Canary Islands The Canary Islands (; es, Canarias, ), also known informally as the Canaries, are a Spanish autonomous community and archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, in Macaronesia. At their closest point to the African mainland, they are west of Morocc ...

. In 1863 he received his

habilitation Habilitation is the highest university degree, or the procedure by which it is achieved, in many European countries. The candidate fulfills a university's set criteria of excellence in research, teaching and further education, usually including a ...

at Zurich, working as a lecturer at the "Polytechnikum". While in Zurich, he produced an accurate geological map of the

Saint-Gotthard Massif The Gotthard Massif or Saint-Gotthard Massif (german: Gotthardmassiv or ; it, Massiccio del San Gottardo; rm, Massiv dal Gottard) is a mountain range in the Alps in Switzerland, located at the border of four cantons: Valais, Ticino, Uri and Grau ...

. In 1867 he relocated to the Senckenberg Nature Research Society in

Frankfurt Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...

as a geologist and

mineralogist Mineralogy is a subject of geology specializing in the scientific study of the chemistry, crystal structure, and physical (including optical) properties of minerals and mineralized artifacts. Specific studies within mineralogy include the proces ...

. In 1873 he was appointed professor of geology at the

University of Halle Martin Luther University of Halle-Wittenberg (german: Martin-Luther-Universität Halle-Wittenberg), also referred to as MLU, is a public, research-oriented university in the cities of Halle and Wittenberg and the largest and oldest university i ...

, followed by a full professorship the following year. At Halle, he occupied himself with paleobotanical research, and in the process amassed an impressive collection of fossil plants. He also conducted studies of

coal Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen. Coal is formed when dea ...

deposits in the

Saale The Saale (), also known as the Saxon Saale (german: Sächsische Saale) and Thuringian Saale (german: Thüringische Saale), is a river in Germany and a left-bank tributary of the Elbe. It is not to be confused with the smaller Fränkische Saale, ...

valley, as well as scientific investigations of

salt deposit Salt mining extracts natural salt deposits from underground. The mined salt is usually in the form of halite (commonly known as rock salt), and extracted from evaporite formations. History Before the advent of the modern internal combustio ...

s west of Halle. In 1877 he became a member of the

German Academy of Sciences Leopoldina The German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina (german: Deutsche Akademie der Naturforscher Leopoldina – Nationale Akademie der Wissenschaften), short Leopoldina, is the national academy of Germany, and is located in Halle (Saale). Founded ...

, becoming its president in 1895 as successor to

Hermann Knoblauch Karl Hermann Knoblauch (; 11 April 1820 – 30 June 1895) was a German physicist. He is most notable for his studies of radiant heat. He was one of the six founding members of the Deutsche Physikalische Gesellschaft at Berlin on 14 January 1845. ...

(1820–1895).

Selected written works

* ''Reisebilder von den Canarischen inseln'', 1867 - Travel pictures of the Canary Islands. * " Santorin. The Kaimeni Islands from observations", (with

Wilhelm Reiss Wilhelm Reiss (13 June 1838 – 29 September 1908) was a German geologist and explorer born in Mannheim. Along with Angel Escobar, he was the first person to scale Cotopaxi (1872), and with vulcanologist Alphons Stübel, he was the first to as ...

and

Alphons Stübel Moritz Alphons Stübel (26 July 1835 – 10 November 1904) was a German geologist and naturalist. Biography He studied chemistry and mineralogy at the University of Leipzig. With geologist Wilhelm Reiss (1838–1908), he conducted geolog ...

) published in English in 1867. * ''Geologische beschreibung der insel Tenerife : Ein beitrag zur kenntniss vulkanischer gebirge''. (with Wilhelm Reiss), 1868 - Geological representation of

Tenerife Tenerife (; ; formerly spelled ''Teneriffe'') is the largest and most populous island of the Canary Islands. It is home to 43% of the total population of the archipelago. With a land area of and a population of 978,100 inhabitants as of Janu ...

. A contribution to the knowledge of

volcanic A volcano is a rupture in the crust of a planetary-mass object, such as Earth, that allows hot lava, volcanic ash, and gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface. On Earth, volcanoes are most often found where tectonic plates a ...

mountains. * ''Geologische Beschreibung des Ringgebirges von Santorin'', 1871 - Geological description of the "Ring mountains" of Santorini. * ''Das St. Gotthardgebirge mit einer geologischen karte und 4 tafeln von Karl von Fritsch'', 1873 - The St. Gotthard mountain range with a geological map and four panels by Karl von Fritsch. * ''Geognostische Karte des Sanct Gotthard'', 1873 - Geognostic map of Sanct Gotthard. * ''Beitrag zur kenntnis der tierwelt der deutschen Trias'', 1902 - Contribution to the knowledge of wildlife during the German

Triassic The Triassic ( ) is a geologic period and system which spans 50.6 million years from the end of the Permian Period 251.902 million years ago ( Mya), to the beginning of the Jurassic Period 201.36 Mya. The Triassic is the first and shortest period ...

.WorldCat Identities
(publications II)

References

Bürger.Stiftung.Halle; Fritsch
(biography) {{DEFAULTSORT:Fritsch, Karl von 19th-century German geologists German paleontologists Academic staff of the University of Halle Academic staff of ETH Zurich Scientists from Weimar 1838 births 1906 deaths University of Göttingen alumni