Friedrich August von Alberti (September 4, 1795 – September 12, 1878) was a German

geologist A geologist is a scientist who studies the solid, liquid, and gaseous matter that constitutes Earth and other terrestrial planets, as well as the processes that shape them. Geologists usually study geology, earth science, or geophysics, althou ...

whose ground-breaking 1834 publication recognized the unity of the three characteristic

strata In geology and related fields, a stratum ( : strata) is a layer of rock or sediment characterized by certain lithologic properties or attributes that distinguish it from adjacent layers from which it is separated by visible surfaces known as e ...

that compose the sedimentary deposits of the

Triassic The Triassic ( ) is a geologic period and system which spans 50.6 million years from the end of the Permian Period 251.902 million years ago ( Mya), to the beginning of the Jurassic Period 201.36 Mya. The Triassic is the first and shortest per ...

period in

Northern Europe The northern region of Europe has several definitions. A restrictive definition may describe Northern Europe as being roughly north of the southern coast of the Baltic Sea, which is about 54°N, or may be based on other geographical factors ...

. From the

fossil A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserved ...

s contained in the three distinct layers— of

red bed Red beds (or redbeds) are sedimentary rocks, typically consisting of sandstone, siltstone, and shale, that are predominantly red in color due to the presence of ferric oxides. Frequently, these red-colored sedimentary strata locally contain t ...

sandstones, capped by limestones (''

Muschelkalk The Muschelkalk (German for "shell-bearing limestone"; french: calcaire coquillier) is a sequence of sedimentary rock strata (a lithostratigraphic unit) in the geology of central and western Europe. It has a Middle Triassic (240 to 230 million ...

''), followed by black shales— that are found throughout Germany and Northwest Europe, and are called the 'Trias' (Latin ''trias'' meaning triad), Alberti detected that they formed a single stratigraphic formation; today it would be termed a ''

system A system is a group of interacting or interrelated elements that act according to a set of rules to form a unified whole. A system, surrounded and influenced by its environment, is described by its boundaries, structure and purpose and express ...

''. He identified the Triassic as bearing a unique fossil fauna, bounded by the Permian extinction below and by another extinction above. Alberti grew up in

Stuttgart Stuttgart (; Swabian: ; ) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Baden-Württemberg. It is located on the Neckar river in a fertile valley known as the ''Stuttgarter Kessel'' (Stuttgart Cauldron) and lies an hour from the Sw ...

and

Rottweil Rottweil (; Alemannic: ''Rautweil'') is a town in southwest Germany in the state of Baden-Württemberg. Rottweil was a free imperial city for nearly 600 years. Located between the Black Forest and the Swabian Alps, Rottweil has nearly 25,00 ...

where he was educated at the Gymnasium and went to the military school in Stuttgart. Afterwards he went back to Rottweil, a town south of Stuttgart. He learned the

salt Salt is a mineral composed primarily of sodium chloride (NaCl), a chemical compound belonging to the larger class of salts; salt in the form of a natural crystalline mineral is known as rock salt or halite. Salt is present in vast quant ...

processing system and became a ''Salinentechniker'' (salt technician). He was quickly promoted to ''Salineninspektor'' (salt supervisor). In 1823, based on his perception of the area's geology, he had an idea to drill for salt in Rottenmünster. Eight months later the team had success and found salt, in a location where no one would have considered the possibility of finding salt. He also made excavations in the Roman ruins of Rottweil, the ancient '' Arae Flaviae''; he published his findings from 1833 to 1837. Alberti bought a house and lived in Rottenmünster, a former abbey 2 miles from Rottweil, from 1829 to 1853. While there he worked as manager for two salt companies. After he retired he moved to

Heilbronn Heilbronn () is a city in northern Baden-Württemberg, Germany, surrounded by Heilbronn District. With over 126,000 residents, it is the sixth-largest city in the state. From the late Middle Ages, it developed into an important trading centre. A ...

. He took a position as advisor, salt technician, and geologist. He had excellent skills in understanding

sandstone Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks. Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicat ...

and

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms w ...

. He discovered that if you find combinations of these two kinds of stone together, you will always find salt. He wrote books on his experiences of looking and drilling for salt.F. A. von Alberti, ''Halurgische Geologie'', 1852 He invented the method of mining salt by pumping water into the mine; when the brine rose to the surface, he would allow the water to evaporate and then he would collect the salt. The Eberhard Karls University of

Tübingen Tübingen (, , Swabian: ''Dibenga'') is a traditional university city in central Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated south of the state capital, Stuttgart, and developed on both sides of the Neckar and Ammer rivers. about one in three ...

gave Friedrich August von Alberti an honorary doctorate for his achievements in the salt-mining industry. The city honored him with a street in his name. Alberti was very well thought of and popular. People liked him for his personality, his happiness, and the fact that he was very open and honest to everyone. After he died his family stayed in Rottweil, where also a street bears his name. Today many of his descendants still live in the town. In

Bad Friedrichshall Bad Friedrichshall () is a town in the district of Heilbronn in Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. It is situated at the confluences of the Jagst and of the Kocher into the Neckar, some north of Heilbronn. Bad Friedrichshall arose by ...

, also a former salt town, a school is named after him, the ''Friedrich-von-Alberti-Gymnasium''.

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