Johannes Walther (July 20, 1860 – May 4, 1937) was a German geologist who discovered important principles of

stratigraphy Stratigraphy is a branch of geology concerned with the study of rock layers (strata) and layering (stratification). It is primarily used in the study of sedimentary and layered volcanic rocks. Stratigraphy has three related subfields: lithost ...

, including Walther's Law.Norbert Hauschke, Silvia Isaac, Lars Schimpf, Martin Seiffert, Wolfgang Gossel (2010). ''Johannes Walther (1860 - 1937) zwischen Riff und Wüste - Spurensicherung in 3 D anlässlich seines 150.'' (''John Walther (1860 - 1937) between the reef and the desert - in 3D crime scene on the occasion of his 150th Birthday''). Halle (Saale). October 2010.

Early life and work

Walther came from a religious home and studied

botany Botany, also called plant science, is the branch of natural science and biology studying plants, especially Plant anatomy, their anatomy, Plant taxonomy, taxonomy, and Plant ecology, ecology. A botanist or plant scientist is a scientist who s ...

zoology Zoology ( , ) is the scientific study of animals. Its studies include the anatomy, structure, embryology, Biological classification, classification, Ethology, habits, and distribution of all animals, both living and extinction, extinct, and ...

, and

philosophy Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...

at the

University of Jena The University of Jena, officially the Friedrich Schiller University Jena (, abbreviated FSU, shortened form ''Uni Jena''), is a public research university located in Jena, Thuringia, Germany. The university was established in 1558 and is cou ...

. In 1882 he successfully completed this course with a doctorate. Then he studied

geology Geology (). is a branch of natural science concerned with the Earth and other astronomical objects, the rocks of which they are composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other Earth ...

and

palaeontology Paleontology, also spelled as palaeontology or palæontology, is the scientific study of the life of the past, mainly but not exclusively through the study of fossils. Paleontologists use fossils as a means to classify organisms, measure geo ...

Leipzig Leipzig (, ; ; Upper Saxon: ; ) is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Saxony. The city has a population of 628,718 inhabitants as of 2023. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, eighth-largest city in Ge ...

and later

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

. The following year he worked at the

Stazione Zoologica The Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn is a research institute in Naples, Italy, devoted to basic research in biology. Research is largely interdisciplinary involving the fields of evolution, biochemistry, molecular biology, neurobiology, cell biol ...

Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...

as a lecturer, staying for two years. Among other things, he ran extensive sedimentological and biological studies. In 1885 he returned to Jena and

habilitated Habilitation is the highest university degree, or the procedure by which it is achieved, in Germany, France, Italy, Poland and some other European and non-English-speaking countries. The candidate fulfills a university's set criteria of excellen ...

there in 1886 with a thesis on

crinoid Crinoids are marine invertebrates that make up the class Crinoidea. Crinoids that remain attached to the sea floor by a stalk in their adult form are commonly called sea lilies, while the unstalked forms, called feather stars or comatulids, are ...

s. After travelling, he was appointed as a professor at Jena in 1890.

Later life

Walther moved to the

University of Halle Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg (), also referred to as MLU, is a public research university in the cities of Halle and Wittenberg. It is the largest and oldest university in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt. MLU offers German and i ...

in 1906, staying until 1929. Whilst there, he was in 1924 elected president of the prestigious

German Academy of Sciences Leopoldina The German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina (), in short Leopoldina, is the national academy of Germany, and is located in Halle (Saale). Founded on 1 January 1652, based on academic models in Italy, it was originally named the ''Academi ...

, an office he held until 1931.

Publications

* ''The Law of Desertification in the Present and the Past'' (''Das Gesetz der Wüstenbildung in Gegenwart und Vorzeit''), 2007 reprint * ''Modern Lithogenesis'', 1883–84 * ''Introduction to geology as a historical science'' (''Einleitung in die Geologie als historische Wissenschaft''), 1893–94 * ''History of the Earth and Life'', (''Geschichte der Erde und des Lebens''), 1908 * ''General Palaeontology'' (''Allgemeine Paläontologie''), 1919–1927Allgemeine Paläontologie
(''General Palaeontology''), Volumes 1–3, Borntraeger, 548 pages. *

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Walther, Johannes 1860 births 1937 deaths People from Neustadt an der Orla People from Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach 19th-century German geologists Sedimentologists