Vittorio Simonelli (May 1860, in
Arezzo
Arezzo ( , ; ) is a city and ''comune'' in Italy and the capital of the Province of Arezzo, province of the same name located in Tuscany. Arezzo is about southeast of Florence at an elevation of Above mean sea level, above sea level. As of 2 ...
– 9 February 1929, in
San Quirico d'Orcia
San Quirico d'Orcia is a ''comune'' (municipality) of about 2,500 inhabitants in the Province of Siena in the Italian region Tuscany, located about southeast of Florence and about southeast of Siena inside the Valdorcia landscape. It is named in ...
) was an Italian
geologist
A geologist is a scientist who studies the structure, composition, and History of Earth, history of Earth. Geologists incorporate techniques from physics, chemistry, biology, mathematics, and geography to perform research in the Field research, ...
and
paleontologist
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 geolo ...
.
Biography
He studied natural sciences at the
University of Pisa
The University of Pisa (, UniPi) is a public university, public research university in Pisa, Italy. Founded in 1343, it is one of the oldest universities in Europe. Together with Scuola Normale Superiore di Pisa and Sant'Anna School of Advanced S ...
as a pupil of
Giuseppe Meneghini
Giuseppe Giovanni Antonio Meneghini (30 July 1811, Padua – 29 January 1889, Pisa) was an Italian botanist, geologist and paleontologist.
Biography
Meneghini became interested in science under his school teacher Pietro Melo. Follow ...
. From 1883 he taught classes in
physical geography
Physical geography (also known as physiography) is one of the three main branches of geography. Physical geography is the branch of natural science which deals with the processes and patterns in the natural environment such as the atmosphere, h ...
at Pisa, later travelling to
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 ...
, where in 1889/90 he studied paleontology with
Karl von Zittel and
August Rothpletz. From 1891 to 1895 he was an assistant to the chair of geology at the
University of Bologna
The University of Bologna (, abbreviated Unibo) is a Public university, public research university in Bologna, Italy. Teaching began around 1088, with the university becoming organised as guilds of students () by the late 12th century. It is the ...
, then relocated to
University of Parma
The University of Parma () is a public university located in Parma, Emilia-Romagna, Italy. Organized into nine departments, it is one of the oldest universities in the world. As of 2016, it had approximately 26,000 students.
History
During the ...
as an instructor of geology and
mineralogy
Mineralogy is a subject of geology specializing in the scientific study of the chemistry, crystal structure, and physical (including optical mineralogy, optical) properties of minerals and mineralized artifact (archaeology), artifacts. Specific s ...
.
[Vittorio Simonelli - Archivio Storico dell'Università di Bologna]
(biography)
In 1903 he returned to Bologna as a teacher of geology at the Royal School of Engineers ("''Regia Scuola d'Applicazione per gli Ingegneri''"), and during the following year took on additional duties as an instructor of geology and mineralogy at the Royal School of Agriculture ("''Regia Scuola Superiore di Agraria''"), also in Bologna. In 1904
Giovanni Capellini
Giovanni Capellini (23 August 1833 – 28 May 1922) was an Italian geologist and paleontologist.
He was a Senator of the Kingdom of Italy in the seventeenth legislature.
Birth and education
Giovanni Capellini was born on 23 August 1833 in La ...
appointed Simonelli as
curator
A curator (from , meaning 'to take care') is a manager or overseer. When working with cultural organizations, a curator is typically a "collections curator" or an "exhibitions curator", and has multifaceted tasks dependent on the particular ins ...
of the ''Museo Geologico'' at the university. During his career, he travelled widely, taking scientific trips throughout Italy, and to
Crete
Crete ( ; , Modern Greek, Modern: , Ancient Greek, Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the List of islands by area, 88th largest island in the world and the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, fifth la ...
,
Cephalonia
Kefalonia or Cephalonia (), formerly also known as Kefallinia or Kephallonia (), is the largest of the Ionian Islands in western Greece and the 6th-largest island in Greece after Crete, Euboea, Lesbos, Rhodes and Chios. It is also a separate regio ...
,
Podolia
Podolia or Podillia is a historic region in Eastern Europe located in the west-central and southwestern parts of Ukraine and northeastern Moldova (i.e. northern Transnistria).
Podolia is bordered by the Dniester River and Boh River. It features ...
,
Palestine
Palestine, officially the State of Palestine, is a country in West Asia. Recognized by International recognition of Palestine, 147 of the UN's 193 member states, it encompasses the Israeli-occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and th ...
,
Galicia and
North Africa
North Africa (sometimes Northern Africa) is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region. However, it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of t ...
.
[
In 1893 he was the first to identify the remains of prehistoric ]elephant
Elephants are the largest living land animals. Three living species are currently recognised: the African bush elephant ('' Loxodonta africana''), the African forest elephant (''L. cyclotis''), and the Asian elephant ('' Elephas maximus ...
s on Crete, being located in three cave sites near the city of Rethymno
Rethymno (also Rethymnon; ) is a city in Greece on the island of Crete. It is the capital of Rethymno regional unit, and has a population of more than 35,000 inhabitants (nearly 40,000 for the municipal unit). It is believed to have been built ...
. Also on Crete he discovered the remains of prehistoric deer, which he described as ''Anoglochis cretensis''.
The mineral simonellite commemorates his name.
Published works
He was the author of sixty published works that included treatises on the geology of Monte Cetona, fossils of La Verna
La Verna () is a locality on Mount Penna (), an isolated mountain of situated in the centre of the Tuscan Apennines, rising above the valley of the Casentino, central Italy. The place is known especially for its association with Saint Francis o ...
and the geology of Heraklion
Heraklion or Herakleion ( ; , , ), sometimes Iraklion, is the largest city and the administrative capital city, capital of the island of Crete and capital of Heraklion (regional unit), Heraklion regional unit. It is the fourth largest city in G ...
, to name a few.[ He was a founding editor, with Carlo Fornasini, of the journal ''Rivista italiana di paleontologia''.
The following are some of his significant writings:
* ''Il Monte della Verna e i suoi fossili'', 1884.
* ''Terreni e fossili dell'isola di Pianosa nel mar Tirreno'', 1889.
* ''Dei recenti studi geologici e paleontologici sul territorio senese'', 1895.
* ''Antozoi neogenici del Museo Parmense'', 1896.
* ''Candia : ricordi di escursione'', 1897.
* ''Die marinen Ablagerungen auf Gran Canaria'', 1898 (in German, with August Rothpletz).
* ''Le fosforiti di Terra d'Otranto'', 1919
* ''Cenni sopra alcuni giacimenti fosfatiferi della Galizia, della Podolia e della Palestina'', 1919.Most widely held works by Vittorio Simonelli]
at WorldCat Identities
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Simonelli, Vittorio
1860 births
1929 deaths
People from Arezzo
University of Pisa alumni
Italian paleontologists
19th-century Italian geologists
Italian mineralogists
20th-century Italian geologists