Abstract
Abstract Natural stone is an important material used for buildings, walls and monuments. However, when used outdoors, it is subject to damage by the effects of weathering. Inspired by the experiments carried out by Friedrich Pfaff, a German geologist and professor of mineralogy at the University of Erlangen, Germany, in the 1870s, Archibald Geikie became interested in the subject of rock weathering and came up with the idea of using gravestones as a means of monitoring weathering in stone used for building. This work, apparently carried out in cemeteries in Edinburgh as a sideline to his normal fieldwork activities, was described in 1880 in a communication read to the Royal Society of Edinburgh. It represents the first comprehensive scientific study of rock weathering published in English, and the methodology Geikie developed for his study formed the basis for modern studies of rock weathering using gravestones.
Highlights
It was a simple idea, but a very powerful one
After reading about experiments carried out by the German geologist and professor of mineralogy at the University of Erlangen, Germany, outlined in Pfaff’s book Allgemeine Geologie als Exacte Wissenschaft (Pfaff 1873, p. 317) in which Pfaff described experiments designed to precisely measure the effects of weathering on samples of a range of rock types, Archibald Geikie became interested in the idea of using gravestones to monitor the effects of weathering on different rock types
In this paper Goodchild focused on glacial erosion, and described his use of dated tombstones in Kirkby Stephen Churchyard to measure the rate of weathering in limestones (Goodchild 1875, p. 326)
Summary
It is not clear how Geikie became acquainted with Pfaff’s experiments on rock weathering. Nor is there any obvious evidence that Geikie ever met Pfaff in person to discuss this work. It is not known whether Geikie was familiar with Goodchild’s use of tombstones in the Kirkby Stephen Churchyard to study the rate of weathering of Lower Carboniferous limestones Occasional sketches of memorials appear in later field notebooks dating from 1878 onwards. Charming watercolours showing gravestones are preserved among Geikie’s archives (Fig. 2). These references, appear to refer to interesting memorials Geikie came across during his travels, rather than as part of a systematic study of rock weathering
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