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, althoug ...

whose ground-breaking 1834 publication recognized the unity of the three characteristic strata that compose the sedimentary deposits of the

Triassic The Triassic ( ) is a geologic period and system (stratigraphy), system which spans 50.6 million years from the end of the Permian Period 251.902 million years ago (Year#Abbreviations yr and ya, Mya), to the beginning of the Jurassic Period 201.36 ...

period in Northern Europe. 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 sandstones, capped by limestones (''

Muschelkalk The Muschelkalk (German for "shell-bearing limestone"; french: calcaire coquillier) is a sequence of sedimentary rock, sedimentary rock strata (a lithostratigraphy, lithostratigraphic unit) in the geology of central and western Europe. It has a Mid ...

''), 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''. He identified the Triassic as bearing a unique fossil fauna, bounded by the

Permian extinction The Permian ( ) is a geologic period and stratigraphic system which spans 47 million years from the end of the Carboniferous Period million years ago (Mya), to the beginning of the Triassic Period 251.9 Mya. It is the last period of the Paleozo ...

below and by another extinction above. Alberti grew up in Stuttgart and Rottweil 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. 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 silicates ...

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 whe ...

. 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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