Giovanni Antonio Giobert also known as Jean-Antoine Giobert (27 October 1761 in Mongardino - 14 September 1834 in

Millefiori Millefiori () is a glasswork technique which produces distinctive decorative patterns on glassware. The term millefiori is a combination of the Italian words "mille" (thousand) and "fiori" (flowers). Apsley Pellatt in his book ''Curiosities of ...

) was an Italian chemist and

mineralogist Mineralogy is a subject of geology specializing in the scientific study of the chemistry, crystal structure, and physical (including optical) properties of minerals and mineralized artifacts. Specific studies within mineralogy include the proce ...

who studied

magnetism Magnetism is the class of physical attributes that are mediated by a magnetic field, which refers to the capacity to induce attractive and repulsive phenomena in other entities. Electric currents and the magnetic moments of elementary particles ...

galvanism Galvanism is a term invented by the late 18th-century physicist and chemist Alessandro Volta to refer to the generation of electric current by chemical action. The term also came to refer to the discoveries of its namesake, Luigi Galvani, specif ...

, and

agricultural chemistry Agricultural chemistry is the study of chemistry, especially organic chemistry and biochemistry, as they relate to agriculture—agricultural production, the processing of raw products into foods and beverages, and environmental monitoring and r ...

. He introduced

Antoine Lavoisier Antoine-Laurent de Lavoisier ( , ; ; 26 August 17438 May 1794),
CNRS (

phosphorus Phosphorus is a chemical element with the symbol P and atomic number 15. Elemental phosphorus exists in two major forms, white phosphorus and red phosphorus, but because it is highly reactive, phosphorus is never found as a free element on Ea ...

-based

eudiometer A eudiometer is a laboratory device that measures the change in volume of a gas mixture following a physical or chemical change. Description Depending on the reaction being measured, the device can take a variety of forms. In general, it is ...

sufficiently sensitive to measure atmospheric

carbon dioxide Carbon dioxide ( chemical formula ) is a chemical compound made up of molecules that each have one carbon atom covalently double bonded to two oxygen atoms. It is found in the gas state at room temperature. In the air, carbon dioxide is t ...

and

oxygen Oxygen is the chemical element with the symbol O and atomic number 8. It is a member of the chalcogen group in the periodic table, a highly reactive nonmetal, and an oxidizing agent that readily forms oxides with most elements ...

. He identified the correct composition of the mineral Gioberite, a form of

magnesite Magnesite is a mineral with the chemical formula ( magnesium carbonate). Iron, manganese, cobalt, and nickel may occur as admixtures, but only in small amounts. Occurrence Magnesite occurs as veins in and an alteration product of ultramafic ...

(MgCO3) found in the Piedmont area. He was made a knight (Cavaliere) for his work on the chemistry of indigo dyes.

Early life

Giovanni Antonio Giobert was born on 27 October 1761 in Mongardino near

Asti Asti ( , , ; pms, Ast ) is a '' comune'' of 74,348 inhabitants (1-1-2021) located in the Piedmont region of northwestern Italy, about east of Turin in the plain of the Tanaro River. It is the capital of the province of Asti and it is deeme ...

, to Spirito and Anna Gugalin. He was educated by Abbot G. B. Lovizzolo, studying the physical sciences and chemistry, and was apprenticed in pharmacies in Asti and Turin.

Science

In his early twenties, Giobert focused his studies on the application of chemistry in agriculture and industry. He became a member of the Royal Academy of Sciences of Turin in 1789, at age 28. He served as president of the academy, and contributed to a history of the academy. He edited and contributed to a ''Journal of Arts, Sciences, and Literature, by a Philosophical Society at Turn'', writing about

marl Marl is an earthy material rich in carbonate minerals, clays, and silt. When hardened into rock, this becomes marlstone. It is formed in marine or freshwater environments, often through the activities of algae. Marl makes up the lower part ...

and other fossil substances. In 1800 he became Professor of Agriculture and as of 1802 professor of chemistry and mineralogy at the

University of Turin The University of Turin (Italian language, Italian: ''Università degli Studi di Torino'', UNITO) is a public university, public research university in the city of Turin, in the Piedmont (Italy), Piedmont region of Italy. It is one of the List ...

. He was involved in the Reale Società Agraria di Torino, the Società Italiana della Scienza in Verona (later in Modena) and other scientific academies. Beginning in 1808 he was a corresponding member of the Bavarian Academy of Sciences. Giobert was part of a Turin-based ''Comitato Galvanico'' that supported the theories of

Luigi Galvani Luigi Galvani (, also ; ; la, Aloysius Galvanus; 9 September 1737 – 4 December 1798) was an Italian physician, physicist, biologist and philosopher, who studied animal electricity. In 1780, he discovered that the muscles of dead frogs' legs ...

against those of

Alessandro Volta Alessandro Giuseppe Antonio Anastasio Volta (, ; 18 February 1745 – 5 March 1827) was an Italian physicist, chemist and lay Catholic who was a pioneer of electricity and power who is credited as the inventor of the electric battery and th ...

. Giobert carried out research into the conduction of electricity and the forming of precipitates along a wire in a galvanic apparatus. Giobert was one of the first to spread

Antoine Lavoisier Antoine-Laurent de Lavoisier ( , ; ; 26 August 17438 May 1794),
CNRS (

He published experimental work in the debate over whether water was a simple element or chemical composition of hydrogen and oxygen. In 1792, his work on the refutation of

phlogiston theory The phlogiston theory is a superseded scientific theory that postulated the existence of a fire-like element called phlogiston () contained within combustible bodies and released during combustion. The name comes from the Ancient Greek (''bur ...

won a prize competition on the subject, put forward by the Academy of Letters and Sciences of Mantua in 1790 and 1791. His "Examen chimique de la doctrine du phlogistique et de la doctrine des pneumatistes par rapport à la nature de l 'eau", presented to the Académie royale des Sciences of Turin on 18 March 1792, is considered the most original defense of Lavoisier's theory of water composition to appear in Italy. Giobert contributed significantly to eudiometry, the study of gas composition, by further developing Lavoisier's

. Giobert built a

-based instrument sufficiently sensitive to measure atmospheric

and

. He used it to compare the air quality of

Turin Turin ( , Piedmontese language, Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital ...

with higher altitude

Vinadio Vinadio ( oc, Vinai) is a '' comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Cuneo in the Italian region of Piedmont, located about southwest of Turin and about southwest of Cuneo, on the border with France. It is located along the Stura di Demonte r ...

. A number of other researchers developed variants on his eudiometer, including

Spallanzani Lazzaro Spallanzani (; 12 January 1729 – 11 February 1799) was an Italian Catholic priest (for which he was nicknamed Abbé Spallanzani), biologist and physiologist who made important contributions to the experimental study of bodily function ...

Humphry Davy Sir Humphry Davy, 1st Baronet, (17 December 177829 May 1829) was a British chemist and inventor who invented the Davy lamp and a very early form of arc lamp. He is also remembered for isolating, by using electricity, several elements for ...

John Dalton John Dalton (; 5 or 6 September 1766 – 27 July 1844) was an English chemist, physicist and meteorologist. He is best known for introducing the atomic theory into chemistry, and for his research into Color blindness, colour blindness, which ...

, and

Joseph Louis Gay-Lussac Joseph Louis Gay-Lussac (, , ; 6 December 1778 – 9 May 1850) was a French chemist and physicist. He is known mostly for his discovery that water is made of two parts hydrogen and one part oxygen (with Alexander von Humboldt), for two laws ...

. Nicolas-Théodore de Saussure commended it for its accuracy, describing its use in his studies of the roles of water and gases in the nutrition of plants as follows: Among his many experiments Giobert examined a Piedmontese mineral that he correctly identified as a specific form of magnesium carbonate (MgCO3). The Piedmontese variety of magnesite is sometimes referred to as Gioberite, distinguishing it from other forms. It was named after Giobert by

François Sulpice Beudant François Sulpice Beudant (5 September 1787 – 10 December 1850), was a French mineralogist and geologist. The mineral beudantite was named after him. Life He was born in Paris. He was educated at the Ecole Polytechnique and Ecole Normale, ...

. Identifying its composition was an important contribution to the industry of pottery-making. Giobert also investigated the influence of magnesia on plant growth and found that the presence of earths of silica, lime, alumina and magnesia in the soil was not sufficient for plant growth. This work was important to Saussure and others studying plant growth. In 1790, the University of Turin established the ''Deputazione per la Tinture'', an ambitious project whose goals included the study of dye plants, the review of dyeing processes, cataloguing of dyestuffs and establishing a library, improving artisan skills, working with foreign dyers and chemists, and using new chemicals and instruments to improve the state of the art in Piedmont. An imperial decree in 1810 encouraged the improvement of scientific and industrial techniques for using woad. Giobert was active as a chemical advisor and made important contributions to the dyeing industry, studying the chemistry of natural dyes including

woad ''Isatis tinctoria'', also called woad (), dyer's woad, or glastum, is a flowering plant in the family Brassicaceae (the mustard family) with a documented history of use as a blue dye and medicinal plant. Its genus name, Isatis, derives from ...

indigo Indigo is a deep color close to the color wheel blue (a primary color in the RGB color space), as well as to some variants of ultramarine, based on the ancient dye of the same name. The word "indigo" comes from the Latin word ''indicum'', ...

, and

turkey red Turkey red is a color that was widely used to dye cotton in the 18th and 19th century. It was made using the root of the rubia plant, through a long and laborious process. It originated in India or Turkey, and was brought to Europe in the 1740s ...

. For example, Giobert suggested that uneven bleaching of cotton with alkaline lye was a cause of variable color-fastness when the cloth was dyed. He helped to identify differences between animal- and plant-based dyes, and developed techniques for "animalizing" fibres with nitrogen gas to improve the solidity of the dye. Such techniques became widespread throughout the European dyeing industry. In 1811 Giobert worked with Raymond Latour on the development of blue dyes which became widely used. In 1813, Giobert was appointed director of the ''École impériale pour la fabrication de l'indigo'' in Turin, which was established to study industrial processing of

. Giobert identified a colorless form of indigo (sometimes called indigogen or 'white' indigo) in plants, convertible to indigo-blue through oxidation. For his work on the

color dyeing method, Giobert was made a knight (''Cavaliere''). Giobert also developed the Gioberti tincture, which involved application of

hydrochloric acid Hydrochloric acid, also known as muriatic acid, is an aqueous solution of hydrogen chloride. It is a colorless solution with a distinctive pungent smell. It is classified as a strong acid. It is a component of the gastric acid in the dige ...

and

potassium ferrocyanide Potassium ferrocyanide is the inorganic compound with formula K4 e(CN)6�3H2O. It is the potassium salt of the coordination complex e(CN)6sup>4−. This salt forms lemon-yellow monoclinic crystals. Synthesis In 1752, the French chemist Pie ...

. The Gioberti tincture was used in the 19th century and early 20th century to restore illegible writings or faded pictures, before less harsh chemical reagents were found. Gioberti tincture was used to show the original inscriptions of palimpsests by conservators at the

Vatican Vatican may refer to: Vatican City, the city-state ruled by the pope in Rome, including St. Peter's Basilica, Sistine Chapel, Vatican Museum The Holy See * The Holy See, the governing body of the Catholic Church and sovereign entity recognized ...

Politics

The period in which Giobert was active was one of considerable political upheaval. The University of Turin was closed in both 1797 and 1799 due to political events. Giobert was a francophile and a strong republican supporter of

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader wh ...

. In 1798 he was appointed to the provisional government of Piedmont (Il Governo Provvisorio della Nazione Piemontese), only to be imprisoned in 1799 when the Austrians briefly took power. Following his release, he became a professor at the University of Turin. In 1814, after the restoration of King Victor Emmanuel I, Giobert was one of nine professors removed from their teaching positions in Turin due to their political involvement.

Memorials

Giobert died on 14 September 1834 in

near

. He is remembered by the town of Asti, which named a street in his honor in 1868, and established the Istituto Giobert di Asti in 1882. He was also honored by the town of Mongardino which named the Scuola Elementare Giobert di Mongardino in his honor. Scholars continue to study his life and work. A bust of Giobert was unveiled at the “Giobert: da Mongardino alla nuova chimica” conference in Mongardino on October 20, 2013.

Selected works

* * * * * * * *

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Giobert, Giovanni Antonio 1761 births 1834 deaths Italian chemists