Johann Gottlob von Kurr’s The Mineral Kingdom, 1859

 

 

Johann Gottlob von Kurr (1798-1870) was professor of mineralogy and botany at the Stuttgart Polytechnic Institute when in 1858 he published Das Mineralreich in Bildern. The work was delivered in two sections.

The first is an introduction including topics such as the formation of crystals and chemical reactions of crystals. Of particular note is a five-page table of the chemical elements (pp. 7-11), consisting of two parts: I. Metalloids, nonmetallic elements; and II. Metals.

The second section is devoted to the description of various mineral groups including precious stones, hornblende and augitic minerals, felspathic minerals, micaceous minerals, zeolitic minerals, calcareous minerals, and various salts and compounds. The final pages of the book contain twenty-four lithograph plates depicting crystalline structures and mineral forms. The plates are hand-colored, using metallic finishes to create a lustrous effect.

Each illustration is annotated. The lead image (above) is Plate VIII: Marbles:

Figures 1-9. Marbles.
1. Ruin Marble
2. Fire Marble or Lumachelli
3. Red Marble
4. Pale Yellow Marble
5. Black and White Mottled Becciated Marble
6. Backish-grey Marble
7. Grey Marble
8. Red, Grean, and White-colored Brecciated or Fragmentary Marble
9. Variegated Marble

 

 

Plate B: Modifications of Crystalline Planes, Axes of Crystals, Optical Phenomena of Crystals

Figures 1-10. Modifications of Crystalline Planes, Combinations, Axes, and Optical Phenomena.
1. Curved Places of the Hexakis-Octahedron
2. Striation, or Striping the Planes of the Cube
3. Drusy
4. Drusy, or Crystalline Planes
5. Vertical Striation of the Hexagonal Prism
6. Horizontally Striated Lateral Planes of the Hexagonal Prism
7. Combination of the Cube P with the Octahedron O
8. Combination of the Cube with the Rhombic Dodecagon
9. Combination of the Cube with the Pentagonal Dodecahedron
10. Truncation or Sharpening of the Angles of the Cube

Figures 11-16. Axes of Crystals.
11. Cube with Three Equal Axes Cutting Each Other at Right Angles
12. Axes of Square Prism
13. Axes of the Right Rhombic Prism
14. Axes of the Oblique Rhombic Prism
15. Axes of the Oblique Rhomboidal Prism
16. Axes of the Rhombohedron

Figures 17-21. Optical Phenomena of Crystals.
17. Double Refracting Spar
18. Iridescent Rings of Color
19. Iridescent Rings
20. Colors Presented by Crystals With two Optical Axes
21. System of Rings of By-Axial Crystals

 

 

Plate IX: Carbonates of Lime, Marble, Part of The Mineral Kingdom (above)

Figures 1-9. Carbonate of Lime, Marble.
1. Red-mottled Marble
2. The same [Red-mottled Marble]
3. Gryphitic Limestone
4. Variegated Fragmentary Marble
5. Reddish-yellow and Violet Flaked Marble
6. Pale Yellow and Violet Flaked Marble
7. The same [Pale Yellow and Violet Flaked Marble]
8. The same [Pale Yellow and Violet Flaked Marble]

 

 

Plate XV: Mercury, Quicksilver, Copper Ore

Figures 1-5. Mercury, Quicksilver.
1. Amalgam
2. Native Quicksilver
3. Crystalline Cinnabar
4. Crystallised Cinnabar
5. The same [Crystallised Cinnabar]

Figures 6-20. Copper Ore, Native Ore, and Sulphuret of Copper.
6. Native Copper
7. The same [Native Copper]
8. The same [Native Copper]
9. Copper Glance
10. The same [Copper Glance]
11. Indigo Copper or Covelline
12. Variegated Copper or Erubescite
13. Erubiscite
14. Copper Pyrites or Chalcopyrite
15. The same [Copper Pyrites]
16. The same [Copper Pyrites]
17. Tetrahydrite or Grey Copper
18. The same [Tetrahydrite]
19. The same [Tetrahydrite]
20. The same [Tetrahydrite]

 

 

Plate X: Aragonite, Spar, Gypsum, Anhydrite, Apatite, Fluor Spar, Part of The Mineral Kingdom

Figures 1-3. Arragonite.
1. Crystal of Arragonite
2. Reddish Arragonite
3. Crystallized Arragonite

Figures 4-6. Brown Spar, Bitter Spar, Carbonate of Lime with Protioxide of Iron and Manganese.
4. Reddish-brown Spar
5. Compact-brown Spar
6. The same [Compact-brown Spar]

Figures 7-10. Gypsum, Hydrous Sulphate of Lime.
7. Gypsum
8. The same [Gypsum]
9. The same [Gypsum]
10. Splinter of a Lenticular Twin

Figures 11-12. Anhydrite, Anhydrous Sulphate of Lime.
11. Anhydrite
12. Reddish Anhydrite

Figures 13-14. Apatite, Phosphate of Lime.
13. Apatite
14. The same [Apatite]

Figures 15-18. Fluor Spare, Fluoride of Calcium, or Fluate of Lime.
15. Fluor Spar
16. Fluor Spar
17. The same [Fluor Spar]
18. The same [Fluor Spar]

 

 

 

Plate IX: Carbonates of Lime, Marble

Figures 1-9. Carbonate of Lime, Marble.
1. Red-mottled Marble
2. The same [Red-mottled Marble]
3. Gryphitic Limestone
4. Variegated Fragmentary Marble
5. Reddish-yellow and Violet Flaked Marble
6. Pale Yellow and Violet Flaked Marble
7. The same [Pale Yellow and Violet Flaked Marble]
8. The same [Pale Yellow and Violet Flaked Marble]

 

 

Plate VI: Felspathic Minerals and Rocks, Micaceous Minerals, Granite

Figures 1-10. Felspathic Minerals and Rocks.
1. Potash Felspar
2. Apple-green Felspar or Amazon Stone
3. Common Felspar or Orthoclase
4. Adularia
5. Sodalite, Albite, Pericline
6. Green Porphyry Felspar
7. Black Porphyry
8. Red Antique Porphyryr
9. Labrador Felspar
10. The same [Labrador Felspar]

Figures 11-15. Micaceous Minerals.
11. Pennine or Talcose Mica
12. Common or Bi-axial Mica
13. Black Potash Mica
14. Ripidolite or Prismatic Chlorite
15. Talc

Figures 16-17. Granite.
16. Granite
17. Red Granite

 

 

Plate IV: Quartz and Opal

Figures 1-20. Quartz and Opal.
1. Grey and White Striped Flint
2. Carnelian
3. Fortification Agate
4. Clouded Agate
5. Puddingstone or Quartz Conglomerate
6. Vitrified Tube
7. Wood Opal
8. Chrysoprase
9. Black and White Marked Agate
10. Black Ribbon Agate
11. Dark Brown Ribbon Agate
12. Horny-Coloured Agate
13. Sardonyx or Sard
14. Onyx
15. Red Dotted Agate
16. Brecciated Agate
17. Red Striped Agate
18. Variegated Striped Agate
19. Precious Opal
20. Green Opal

 

 

Plate III: Quartz

Figures 1-19. Quartz.
1. Ferruginous Quartz
2. Rock Crystal
3. Rose Quartz
4. Smoky Quartz
5. Amethyst
6. Group of Rock Crystal
7. Group of Rock Crystal
8. Amethyst
9. Eqyptian Jasper
10. Jasper
11. Ribbon Jasper
12. Heliotrope or Blood Stone
13. Heliotrope
14. Light red Carnelian
15. Moss Agate or Mocca-Stone
16. Chalcedony
17. Chalcedony
18. Milky Quartz
19. Needle Amethyst

 

 

Plate II: Topaz, Garnet, Vesuvian, Idocrase, Chrysolite, Olivine, Pistacite, Epidote, Turquoise, Johnite, Calamite, Lazulite, Lapis Lazuli

Figures 1-7. The Topaz.
1. Topaz
2. The same [Topaz]
3. Dark Yellow Topaz
4. Sea-green Topaz or Aquamarine
5. Light Yellow Topaz
6. Dark Yellow Topaz
7. The same [Dark Yellow Topaz]

Figures 8-19. The Garnet.
8. Common Garnet
9. Primary Form of the Garnet
10. Trapezohedron
11. Rhombic Dodecahedron
12. Lime-Chrome-Garnet or Ouvarovite
13. Noble Garnet or Pyrope
14. Noble Oriental Garnet
15. Red Noble Garnet
16. Noble Garnet or Topazolite
17. Green Garnet or Grossular
18. Black Garnet or Melanite
19. Ruby Garnet

Figures 20-24. Vesuvian and Idocrase.
20. Vesuvian
21. The same [Vesuvian]
22. The same [Vesuvian]
23. Brown Vesuvian
24. Cut Vesuvian

Figures 25-27. Chrysolite, Olivine.
25. Chrysolite
26. The same [Chrysolite]
27. The same [Chrysolite]

Figures 28-30. Pistacite, Epidote.
28. Pistacite
29. The same [Pistacite]
30. The same [Pistacite]

Figures 31-34. Turquoise, Johnite, Calaite.
31.Grape Johnite
32. Apple-green Turquoise
33. The same [Apple-green Turquoise]
34. Bluish-green Turquoise

Figures 35-36. Lazulite, Lapiz Lazuli
35. Light Blue Lazulite
36. Dark Blue Lapis Lazuli

 

 

Via: BioDiversityLibrary,