Matthias Joseph Anker (6 May 1771 – 3 April 1843) was an Austrian mineralogist and geologist born in Graz. Some sources place his birthdate as 1 May 1772.[1]
He received his education in Vienna, afterwards working as a surgeon in the town of Stainz. In 1807, he was called to Graz as a district surgeon, from where he intensified his scientific studies in mineralogy.[1] Four years later, he joined the staff of mineralogist Friedrich Mohs at the Johanneum in Graz, where he eventually became a professor of mineralogy as well as curator of the mineral cabinet.[2] In 1839, he resigned from his teaching position, but stayed on as director of collections.[3]
In 1828/29, he supervised the creation of a catalog involving the mineral cabinet at the Johanneum, where in 1833 he reorganized the collection according to the Mohs system.[3] Also, he is credited for providing the first geological map of Styria (1835).[1]
In 1825, Wilhelm von Haidinger (1795–1871) named the mineral ankerite in his honor.[2]
Writings
edit- Kurze Darstellung einer Mineralogie von Steiermark (Outline of mineralogy in Styria), 1809
- Kurze Darstellung der mineralogisch-geognostischen Gebirgs-Verhältnisse der Steiermark (Outline of mineralogical-geognostic mountain conditions in Styria), 1835.[4]
References
edit- ^ a b c Wikisource translated biography @ Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie
- ^ a b The Mineralogical Record, Inc. Archived 2015-04-02 at the Wayback Machine (biography)
- ^ a b NDB/ADB Deutsche Biographe Archived 2015-04-02 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Google Books (publications)
  | This article about an Austrian scientist is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
 | This biographical article about a geologist is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |