Identity area
Reference code
Title
Date(s)
- Early 19th century? (Creation)
Level of description
Extent and medium
1 volume
Context area
Name of creator
Biographical history
Born at Cloughballymore, Ireland, 1733; sent to Poictiers to complete his education; entered the Jesuit novitiate at St Omer, 1754; left and returned to Ireland, 1755; his elder brother having been killed in a duel, came into possession of the family estates; having conformed to the established church, called to the Irish bar, 1766; ceased to practise after two years and pursued scientific studies in London; studied Greek at Cregg, 1773; resided in London, 1777-1787; became known to eminent contemporaries and corresponded with learned men in Europe; his library, sent from Galway to London in 1780, was captured by an American privateer; elected a Fellow of the Royal Society, 1780; received the Copley medal for a series of papers on chemical affinity, 1782; published the first systematic treatise on mineralogy in English, 1784; his treatise was translated into French, German, and Russian; delicate health caused him to adopt a more retired life; settled at no 6 Cavendish Row, Dublin, 1787; joined the Royal Irish Academy; President of the Royal Irish Academy, 1799; presided over the Dublin Library and `Kirwanian' Societies; received a gold medal from the Royal Dublin Society in acknowledgment of his services in procuring the Leskeyan cabinet of minerals for their museum; a member of the Edinburgh Royal Society and of a number of foreign academies; honorary LLD, University of Dublin, 1794; declined Lord Castlereagh's offer of a baronetcy; honorary inspector-general of his majesty's mines in Ireland; involved in various scientific controversies; finally adopted a Unitarian form of belief, and spent much time in scriptural study; died, 1812; buried in St George's Church, Lower Temple Street, Dublin. Publications include: Elements of Mineralogy (London, 1784); An Estimate of the Temperatures of Different Latitudes (London, 1787); Essay on Phlogiston (London, 1787); Geological Essays (London, 1799); An Essay on the Analysis of Mineral Waters (1799); Logick (2 volumes, London, 1807); Metaphysical Essays (1811); many papers on various scientific subjects.
Repository
Archival history
GB 0103 MS ADD 251 Early 19th century? Collection (fonds) 1 volume Kirwan , Richard , 1733-1812 , chemist and natural philosopher
Born at Cloughballymore, Ireland, 1733; sent to Poictiers to complete his education; entered the Jesuit novitiate at St Omer, 1754; left and returned to Ireland, 1755; his elder brother having been killed in a duel, came into possession of the family estates; having conformed to the established church, called to the Irish bar, 1766; ceased to practise after two years and pursued scientific studies in London; studied Greek at Cregg, 1773; resided in London, 1777-1787; became known to eminent contemporaries and corresponded with learned men in Europe; his library, sent from Galway to London in 1780, was captured by an American privateer; elected a Fellow of the Royal Society, 1780; received the Copley medal for a series of papers on chemical affinity, 1782; published the first systematic treatise on mineralogy in English, 1784; his treatise was translated into French, German, and Russian; delicate health caused him to adopt a more retired life; settled at no 6 Cavendish Row, Dublin, 1787; joined the Royal Irish Academy; President of the Royal Irish Academy, 1799; presided over the Dublin Library and `Kirwanian' Societies; received a gold medal from the Royal Dublin Society in acknowledgment of his services in procuring the Leskeyan cabinet of minerals for their museum; a member of the Edinburgh Royal Society and of a number of foreign academies; honorary LLD, University of Dublin, 1794; declined Lord Castlereagh's offer of a baronetcy; honorary inspector-general of his majesty's mines in Ireland; involved in various scientific controversies; finally adopted a Unitarian form of belief, and spent much time in scriptural study; died, 1812; buried in St George's Church, Lower Temple Street, Dublin. Publications include: Elements of Mineralogy (London, 1784); An Estimate of the Temperatures of Different Latitudes (London, 1787); Essay on Phlogiston (London, 1787); Geological Essays (London, 1799); An Essay on the Analysis of Mineral Waters (1799); Logick (2 volumes, London, 1807); Metaphysical Essays (1811); many papers on various scientific subjects.
Transferred from Geology Rare Books at University College London.
Manuscript catalogue of a collection of small specimens of minerals, classed and arranged according to R Kirwan (by him, or following his principles).
Open.
Normal copyright restrictions apply.
English
Collection level description.
Source: Dictionary of National Biography. 1999, revised Jul 2001 Catalogues Geology Kirwan , Richard , 1733-1812 , chemist and natural philosopher Mineralogy Scientific methods Secondary documents Typology
Immediate source of acquisition or transfer
Transferred from Geology Rare Books at University College London.
Content and structure area
Scope and content
Manuscript catalogue of a collection of small specimens of minerals, classed and arranged according to R Kirwan (by him, or following his principles).
Appraisal, destruction and scheduling
Accruals
System of arrangement
Conditions of access and use area
Conditions governing access
Open.
Conditions governing reproduction
Normal copyright restrictions apply.
Language of material
- English
Script of material
- Latin
Language and script notes
English
Physical characteristics and technical requirements
Finding aids
Collection level description.
Allied materials area
Existence and location of originals
Existence and location of copies
Related units of description
Publication note
Notes area
Note
Alternative identifier(s)
Access points
Subject access points
Place access points
Name access points
Genre access points
Description control area
Description identifier
Institution identifier
Rules and/or conventions used
Status
Level of detail
Dates of creation revision deletion
Language(s)
- English