Hermann Jordan

Hermann Jordan
Born
Friedrich Wilhelm Hermann Jordan

April 19, 1808
Wetzlar, Holy Roman Empire
DiedAugust 8, 1887(1887-08-08) (aged 79)
Saarbrücken, German Empire
OccupationsNaturalist
paleontologist
Years active1849–1865
Known forDiscovery of Jordanite
SpouseHenriette Röder

Friedrich Wilhelm Hermann Jordan (April 19, 1808 – August 8, 1887) was a German naturalist and scientist.

Early life

Jordan was born in Wetzlar in 1808 to Dr. Johann Gerhard Jordan (1767–1830), a physician, and Sophie Henriette Seidensticker (1772–1829).

In his formative years, Jordan fell ill with some sort of pulmonary condition, and found a high-altitude town in Switzerland and spent weeks there every summer in the village of Imfeld near the Lengenbach Quarry in the Binn Valley for many years. During his time near the quarry, he developed an interest in minerology and assembled a collection of Swiss minerals.

Career

Jordna was responsible for the discovery of crystal regeneration. In 1849, during repair work on the iron smelter at Fischbach-Camphausen [de], a "magnificent crystal crust" was found, which he recognized as zinc oxide.

In 1851, he was elected to be the town physician in Saarbrücken.

In 1854, he collaborated with Christian Erich Hermann von Meyer to publish Ueber die Crustaceen der Steinkohlenformation von Saarbrücken, and contributed to his paleontological research of molluscs.

In 1864, he discovered Jordanite, which was subsequently named for him.

Legacy

Jordan died on August 8, 1887 in Saarbrücken. His mineral collection was donated by Paul Heinrich von Groth to the University of Strasbourg. They supposedly inspired many minerologists like Gerhard vom Rath, Wolfgang Sartorius von Waltershausen, and Heinrich Adolph Baumhauer to take an interest in the minerals of that region.

References

  1. ↑ "Jordan Friedrich Wilhelm Hermann". www.saarland-biografien.de. Retrieved 2026-07-02.
  2. ↑ Roth, Philippe (2007). Minerals First Discovered in Switzerland and Minerals Named After Swiss Individuals. Excalibur Mineral Corp. p. 92. ISBN 978-3-9807561-8-1.
  3. 1 2 "Jordanite" (PDF). bodemschat.nl. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-04-02. Retrieved 2026-07-02.
  4. ↑ Senckenbergische Naturforschende Gesellschaft (1870). Bericht ©ber die Senckenbergische Naturforschende Gesellschaft in Frankfurt am Main. Museum of Comparative Zoology Harvard University. Frankfurt a.M. : Die Gesellschaft. p. 5.
  5. ↑ Kaiserl. Akademie der Wissenschaften in Wien. Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftliche Klass (1853). Sitzungsberichte der Kaiserlichen Akademie der Wissenschaften. Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftliche Classe. Museum of Comparative Zoology Harvard University. Wien : K.-k. Hof-und Staatsdruckerei in Commission bei Karl Gerold's Sohn. p. 8.
  6. ↑ "Jordan, Hermann". LAGIS (in German). Retrieved 2026-07-02.
  7. ↑ Jordan, Hermann; Meyer, Hermann von (2024-05-19). Ueber die Crustaceen der Steinkohlenformation von Saarbrücken: Faszinierende Einblicke in urzeitliche Fossilienwelten (in German). Good Press.
  8. ↑ The Quarterly Journal of Conchology. Hardwicke & Bogue. 1888. p. 296.
  9. ↑ John W. Anthony, Richard A. Bideaux, Kenneth W. Bladh, Monte C. Nichols (2001). "Jordanite". Handbook of Mineralogy (PDF). Mineralogical Society of America.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  10. ↑ Bericht über die Senckenbergische Naturforschende Gesellschaft in Frankfurt am Main (in German). Die Gesellschaft. 1887. p. 5.