Joseph Henri Ferdinand Douvillé (16 June 1846 – 19 January 1937),Coan E. V., Kabat A. R. & Petit R. E. (2009). ''2,400 years of malacology, 6th ed.'', February 15, 2009, 830 pp. + 32 pp. nnex of Collations American Malacological Society: http://www.malacological.org/publications/2400_malacology.html also known as Henri Douvillé, was French

paleontologist Paleontology, also spelled as palaeontology or palæontology, is the scientific study of the life of the past, mainly but not exclusively through the study of fossils. Paleontologists use fossils as a means to classify organisms, measure geolo ...

geologist A geologist is a scientist who studies the structure, composition, and History of Earth, history of Earth. Geologists incorporate techniques from physics, chemistry, biology, mathematics, and geography to perform research in the Field research, ...

and

malacologist Malacology, from Ancient Greek μαλακός (''malakós''), meaning "soft", and λόγος (''lógos''), meaning "study", is the branch of invertebrate zoology that deals with the study of the Mollusca (molluscs or mollusks), the second-largest ...

. Douvillé worked as a mining engineer in

Bourges Bourges ( ; ; ''Borges'' in Berrichon) is a commune in central France on the river Yèvre (Cher), Yèvre. It is the capital of the Departments of France, department of Cher (department), Cher, and also was the capital city of the former provin ...

(1872) and

Limoges Limoges ( , , ; , locally ) is a city and Communes of France, commune, and the prefecture of the Haute-Vienne Departments of France, department in west-central France. It was the administrative capital of the former Limousin region. Situated o ...

(1874), afterwards serving as ''professeur suppléant'' of

paleontology Paleontology, also spelled as palaeontology or palæontology, is the scientific study of the life of the past, mainly but not exclusively through the study of fossils. Paleontologists use fossils as a means to classify organisms, measure ge ...

at the

École des Mines École or Ecole may refer to: * an elementary school in the French educational stages normally followed by secondary education establishments (collège and lycée) * École (river), a tributary of the Seine flowing in région Île-de-France * Éco ...

. From 1881 to 1911 he was a professor of paleontology at the École des Mines.

Contributions and distinctions

For over four decades he was tasked with organizing the collection of paleontology at the École des Mines, and because of his efforts, it became a primary focus of paleontological research in France. Within this time period (1871-1883), he also made contributions to the

geological map A geological map or geologic map is a special-purpose map made to show various geological features. Rock (geology), Rock units or stratum, geologic strata are shown by color or symbols. Bed (geology), Bedding planes and structural features such ...

of France. Douvillé performed

stratigraphical Stratigraphy is a branch of geology concerned with the study of rock layers (strata) and layering (stratification). It is primarily used in the study of sedimentary and layered volcanic rocks. Stratigraphy has three related subfields: lithostrati ...

and paleontological research from

fossils A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserved ...

reported by geologists in the Middle East, North Africa,

Central America Central America is a subregion of North America. Its political boundaries are defined as bordering Mexico to the north, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest. Central America is usually ...

Madagascar Madagascar, officially the Republic of Madagascar, is an island country that includes the island of Madagascar and numerous smaller peripheral islands. Lying off the southeastern coast of Africa, it is the world's List of islands by area, f ...

, etc. He is credited for providing determinations of numerous paleontological species, and was a leading authority on

ammonites Ammonoids are extinct, (typically) coiled-shelled cephalopods comprising the subclass Ammonoidea. They are more closely related to living octopuses, squid, and cuttlefish (which comprise the clade Coleoidea) than they are to nautiluses (family N ...

. In 1881 he was appointed president of the

Société géologique de France The Société géologique de France (SGF) is a French learned society founded on 17 March 1830. As of 2006, it counts 1,200 members. History At its creation, its statutes indicate is to "compete for the advancement of Earth Sciences and Planets, ...

, and in 1907 became a member of the ''

Académie des Sciences The French Academy of Sciences (, ) is a learned society, founded in 1666 by Louis XIV at the suggestion of Jean-Baptiste Colbert, to encourage and protect the spirit of French Scientific method, scientific research. It was at the forefron ...

''. Also he was: * winner of the "Prix Fontannes" (1898). * officer of the "

Légion d'Honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

" (1905). * Médaille Gaudry of the

(1912).

Written works

* ''Sur quelques Brachiopodes du terrain jurassique'', (1886). * ''Mission Scientifique en Perse par J. de Morgan'' 3(4), (1904). * ''Le Crétacé et l'Eocéne du Tibet central'', (1916).WorldCat Identities
(publications)

References

External links

Bulletin de l'Association des Anciens élèves de l'Ecole des Mines de Paris, 1937-I * http://www.annales.com/archives/x/douville.html
photo
French paleontologists French malacologists Members of the French Academy of Sciences 1846 births 1937 deaths French geologists Scientists from Toulouse {{France-zoologist-stub