Wilhelm Heinrich Waagen (23 June 184124 March 1900) 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 was born in
Munich
Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...
and died in
Vienna
en, Viennese
, iso_code = AT-9
, registration_plate = W
, postal_code_type = Postal code
, postal_code =
, timezone = CET
, utc_offset = +1
, timezone_DST ...
.
Overview
He received a
Doctor of Philosophy
A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common Academic degree, degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields ...
degree at the
University of Munich
The Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich (simply University of Munich or LMU; german: Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München) is a public research university in Munich, Germany. It is Germany's List of universities in Germany, sixth-oldest u ...
, where he studied the rocks and fossils of the
Jurassic
The Jurassic ( ) is a Geological period, geologic period and System (stratigraphy), stratigraphic system that spanned from the end of the Triassic Period million years ago (Mya) to the beginning of the Cretaceous Period, approximately Mya. The J ...
system, and published an elaborate work on geology (''Versuch einer Allgemeinen Classification der Schichten des oberen Jura'')
that was crowned by the university. In 1866 he became an instructor in palaeontology at the University of Munich and at the same time taught
Princess Theresa and
Prince Arnulf of Bavaria
Prince Arnulf of Bavaria (german: Franz Joseph Arnulf Adalbert Maria Prinz von Bayern; 6 July 1852 – 12 November 1907) was a member of the Bavarian Royal House of Wittelsbach and a General of Infantry.
Early life
Arnulf was born in Munich, Bava ...
. Although an excellent teacher, and especially competent in practical work, Waagen, who was a most loyal
Catholic
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
, had little prospect of obtaining a professorship at the University of Munich. Consequently, in 1870, he accepted the offer of a position as assistant in the geological survey of
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
, and was appointed palaeontologist in 1874.
In 1875, he returned permanently to Europe because of the severity of the Indian climate. In 1877 he became an instructor at the
University of Vienna
The University of Vienna (german: Universität Wien) is a public research university located in Vienna, Austria. It was founded by Duke Rudolph IV in 1365 and is the oldest university in the German-speaking world. With its long and rich histor ...
in 1877 and lectured with great success on the geology of India. In 1879 Waagen went to the
German Polytechnic of Prague as professor of geology and
mineralogy
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 ...
, and in 1890 he was professor of
palaeontology
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 ...
at the
University of Vienna
The University of Vienna (german: Universität Wien) is a public research university located in Vienna, Austria. It was founded by Duke Rudolph IV in 1365 and is the oldest university in the German-speaking world. With its long and rich histor ...
. In 1886 he declined a position at the school of mines at Berlin.
He was named councillor of the board of mines (Oberbergart), and in 1893 was made a corresponding member of the
Academy of Sciences
An academy of sciences is a type of learned society or academy (as special scientific institution) dedicated to sciences that may or may not be state funded. Some state funded academies are tuned into national or royal (in case of the Unite ...
. In 1898, the
Geological Society of London
The Geological Society of London, known commonly as the Geological Society, is a learned society based in the United Kingdom. It is the oldest national geological society in the world and the largest in Europe with more than 12,000 Fellows.
Fe ...
awarded him the
Lyell medal
The Lyell Medal is a prestigious annual scientific medal given by the Geological Society of London, equal in status to the Murchison Medal. This medal is awarded based on one Earth Scientist's exceptional contribution of research to the scientific ...
.
Waagen's writings before his trip to India treat especially the German Jura and its fossils. He was a pioneer in the geological investigation of India (the
Salt Range
The Salt Range ( pnb, ) is a mountain range in the north of Punjab province of Pakistan, deriving its name from its extensive deposits of rock salt. The range extends along the south of the Potohar Plateau and the north of the Jhelum River. The ...
) by the scientific presentation of rich palaeontological material. He established a refined
lithostratigraphy
Lithostratigraphy is a sub-discipline of stratigraphy, the geological science associated with the study of strata or rock layers. Major focuses include geochronology, comparative geology, and petrology.
In general, strata are primarily igneo ...
of the
Early Triassic
The Early Triassic is the first of three epochs of the Triassic Period of the geologic timescale. It spans the time between Ma and Ma (million years ago). Rocks from this epoch are collectively known as the Lower Triassic Series, which is a un ...
series (Mianwali Formation) that still holds today. This allows to replace most of the
ammonoid
Ammonoids are a group of extinct marine mollusc animals in the subclass Ammonoidea of the class Cephalopoda. These molluscs, commonly referred to as ammonites, are more closely related to living coleoids (i.e., octopuses, squid and cuttlefish) ...
s he described in their original stratigraphic position, an accomplishment rarely achieved by paleontologists in the late 19th century. He first realized how important the Early Triassic ammonoid succession of the Salt Range was for the construction of the Triassic time scale.
In 1869, after an exhaustive study of
ammonites
Ammonoids are a group of extinct marine mollusc animals in the subclass Ammonoidea of the class Cephalopoda. These molluscs, commonly referred to as ammonites, are more closely related to living coleoids (i.e., octopuses, squid and cuttlefish) ...
, Waagen advocated the theory of
evolution
Evolution is change in the heritable characteristics of biological populations over successive generations. These characteristics are the expressions of genes, which are passed on from parent to offspring during reproduction. Variation ...
or mutation for certain series of fossils. As a young man he had taken an active part in the Catholic life of Munich, and two years before his death he wrote a treatise on the first chapter of
Genesis
Genesis may refer to:
Bible
* Book of Genesis, the first book of the biblical scriptures of both Judaism and Christianity, describing the creation of the Earth and of mankind
* Genesis creation narrative, the first several chapters of the Book of ...
that showed both the geologist and the Christian.
Legacy
The fish ''
Puntius waageni'' is named for Waagen, as it was described on the basis of a specimen that he collected.
Editorial works
Waagen was one of the editors of the periodical "''Geognostische-paläontologische Beiträge''" (Munich), and during the years 1894-1900 editor of the "''Beiträge zur Paläontologie Oesterreich-Ungarns und des Orients''" (Vienna); after the death of
Joachim Barrande
Joachim Barrande (11 August 1799 – 5 October 1883) was a French geologist and palaeontologist.
Career
Barrande was born at Saugues, Haute Loire, and educated in the École Polytechnique and École Nationale des Ponts et Chaussées at Paris. Al ...
(1883) he edited several volumes of Barrande's work "''Système silurien''".
Waagen's most important works were:
* "''Der Jura in Franken, Schwaben und der Schweiz''" (Munich, 1864).
* "''Klassification der Schichten des obern Jura''" (Munich, 1865).
* "''Über die Zone des Ammonites Sowerbyi''" (Munich, 1867)
* "''Die Formenreihe des Ammonites subradiatus''" (Munich, 1869).
* "''Ueber die geologische Verteilung der Organismen in Indien''" (Vienna, 1878).
* "''Das Schopfungsproblem" in "Natur und Offenbarung''" (
Munster
Munster ( gle, an Mhumhain or ) is one of the provinces of Ireland, in the south of Ireland. In early Ireland, the Kingdom of Munster was one of the kingdoms of Gaelic Ireland ruled by a "king of over-kings" ( ga, rí ruirech). Following the ...
, 1898; as a separate publication, 1899).
* "''Gliederun der pelagischen Sedimente des Triassystems''" (Vienna, 1895).
He wrote in English: "Jurassic Fauna of Kutch" (1873-6); "Productus Limestone" (1879–91); "Fossils from the Ceratite Formation" (1892).
References
*
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Waagen, Wilhelm Heinrich
1841 births
1900 deaths
German paleontologists
19th-century German geologists
German Roman Catholics
Science teachers
German science writers
Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich alumni
German male non-fiction writers
Lyell Medal winners