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The Albert Medal by William Brock The Albert Medal By William Brock The Albert Medal of the Royal “eminent services rendered to the Society for the Encouragement Industrial Arts by his investigations of Arts, Manufactures and in organic chemistry, and for his Commerce was struck in 1863 successful labour in promoting to commemorate the long the cultivation of chemical Presidency of the Society by education and research in Prince Albert between 1843 England.” The award, therefore, and his death in 1861. It was reflected Hofmann’s contributions awarded annually from 1864 to the creation of the British “for distinguished merit in dyestuffs industry, and the promoting Arts, Manufactures, training of chemists at the Royal and Commerce”. The medal’s College of Chemistry between obverse portrays Prince Albert; 1845 and 1865. The medal had the reverse three allegorical previously been presented to figures representing the areas Justus von Liebig in 1869 for his promoted by the Society since its “contributions to the development foundation in 1754. Shown here of food economy and agriculture”. is a letter to Hofmann from the The only other German chemist Society‘s President, Edward Prince ever to have received the medal of Wales (later King Edward VII), was Robert Bunsen in 1898. awarding him the Albert Medal for Obverse and reverse of the Albert Medal Image reproduced by courtesy of the RSA, London. Photography by Maxwell Hodgetts Registered charity number: 207890 Hofmann and chemical models By William Brock In his 1862 RI lecture Hofmann had introduced wires shaped into a cube into which different coloured zinc cubes representing hydrogen, carbon, nitrogen, chlorine, etc. could be placed and substituted. This was purely an architectural visual aid to help understand substitution and how chemists could build larger molecules from the basic types of hydrogen, water, methane and ammonia. It was never meant to A diagram on the formation of ammonia from Hofmann’s Friday Evening Discourse write up represent chemical reality. It was “On the Combining Power of Atoms”, 7 April 1865 Image reproduced by courtesy of the Royal Institution of Great Britain about this time that, exploiting the new concept of valence, the Scots chemist Alexander (RCC) assistant, Herbert McLeod, the adult game of croquet, which Crum Brown introduced graphic he assembled models using was first introduced to England in formulae. Hofmann immediately miniature billiard or croquet 1856, quickly led to table croquet saw that these line formulae could balls, using the same coloured sets that young children could be built in three dimensions by signatures he had used previously. play with in middle-class homes. bolting the coloured zinc cubes These “croquet” models, which Such sets used ceramic balls. he had hitherto used together you see here, were first Hofmann would undoubtedly and assembling them on a demonstrated in another public have been familiar with these tripod. For ease of manipulation lecture to the RI in 1865. cultural and recreational ceramic balls instead of zinc developments, though whether cubes were used. Again, these Although Hofmann appears they directly influenced his models were not in any way not to have viewed his models modelling of molecules in the representative of real chemical as literal images of molecules, 1860s has yet to be convincingly structures, but instead visual aids historians have noted that demonstrated. of how chemists had the ability he inherited an interest in to assemble complex molecules architecture from his father (who by means of substitution and designed the enlargement of elimination reactions. With the aid Liebig’s laboratories at Giessen in of his Royal College of Chemistry 1839). It has also been noted that Registered charity number: 207890 Hofmann’s Friday evening discourse at the Royal Institution on 11 April 1862 By William Brock In his penetrating report on the namely hydrogen, water, printed version of the lecture in chemical exhibits at the 1862 ammonia and methane. He the RI’s Proceedings, shown here. London International Exhibition proceeded to illustrate this “type The lecture ended with the moral: at South Kensington, Hofmann theory” with wire cubes into which when Faraday had first prepared foresaw that coal was destined to blocks of zinc, each painted in benzene at the RI in 1825, he had be the primary source of colours colours representing hydrogen never intended to find something and that synthetic dyestuffs would (white), carbon (black), oxygen “useful”. Chemists should be soon entirely replace natural (red), nitrogen (blue), chlorine free to pursue pure synthetic dyes. This was the theme of a (green), etc, could be lowered. He research for its own sake and remarkable illustrated lecture that later called the volume of space allow economic and commercial Hofmann gave to members of the his lattice wire cubes occupied a applications to emerge in the Royal Institution on Friday 11 April “crith”, which went on to become course of time. Privately, however, 1862 when he was President of the chemists’ “mole”. Hofmann’s own experience with the Chemical Society. his pupils demonstrated that In a further dazzling sequence of progress would be even more Arguing that coal was “a sort of aids and practical demonstrations, rapid when there was a symbiosis magazine of several elements”, Hofmann showed the audience between pure science and he claimed these elements samples of the aniline dyes that trade – a view that he did much could be shuffled into four “types he and his pupils had prepared. to encourage on his return to of construction” or templates, These samples accompanied the Germany in 1865. Let him indulge in the pursuit of truth, – of truth pure and simple. – of truth not for the sake of Mauve, not for the sake of Magenta – let him pursue truth for the sake of truth! Registered charity number: 207890 John Tyndall and Robert Bunsen By Roland Jackson John Tyndall is known as a influenced by Bunsen. When physicist rather than a chemist, Tyndall finally got his big break— but he had greater regard for no the offer of a professorship at other German man than Robert the Royal Institution—it was to Bunsen. Bunsen that he turned for advice. Tyndall had to give four lectures In October 1848, Tyndall ‘On Air and Water’ to qualify him travelled to Marburg with Edward formally for consideration. He Frankland. Following an invitation wrote to Bunsen, who suggested from Bunsen to Frankland, the complete structure and they had decided to study for experimental options for a lecture their PhDs at the university on water. Following this, Tyndall where Bunsen was a professor. gave his second Friday Evening They were the first from Britain Discourse, the set-piece lecture to do so. to the RI’s Society audience, ‘On some of the eruptive phenomena Tyndall found Bunsen’s lectures of Iceland’. Again, he received John Tyndall “had greater regard for no other German man than Robert Bunsen” superb. He thought the teaching advice from Bunsen, who had Image reproduced by courtesy of the Royal Institution impressive, and that it would take visited Iceland. of Great Britain ‘years of devoted effort to bring England up to the same standard’. Over subsequent years the His surprisingly neat notebooks two men maintained a friendly from those days have recently correspondence. Tyndall was an been discovered, and are shown important conduit between the here. These are predominantly German men of science and the in German, including substantial British; he had many German portions in Kurrentschrift, the old papers translated and made German form of handwriting. available in English, and actively promoted their recognition by Tyndall would later become the Royal Society. He proposed known as one of the most Bunsen for the Copley Medal in engaging lecturers in England, 1857, and Bunsen received the and he was both inspired and award in 1860. Robert Bunsen‘s lectures were “superb“ Image reproduced by courtesy of the Royal Institution of Great Britain Registered charity number: 207890 Robert Warington, Justus von Liebig and the Chemical Society By Anna Simmons On 30 March 1841 the Chemical of the Chemical Society. Liebig Society of London was replied thanking the Society for constituted with seventy-seven conferring this distinction upon founder members. Robert him and wishing it every success. Warington was one of its two Further letters from Liebig secretaries and Justus von Liebig demonstrate the close friendship its first foreign member. which developed between the two men, a relationship which The first edition of Proceedings of was typical of the strong links the Chemical Society of London existing between German and contained an abstract of Liebig’s British chemists at this time. paper “On the Preparation and Formation of Yellow Prussiate of The central role German chemists Potash”, which had been read at played in shaping chemical the Society’s meeting on 13 April research and education in Britain 1841, while the first edition of was exemplified in the Royal Memoirs of the Chemical Society College of Chemistry, founded in Robert Warington was the driving force behind the of London contained his article 1845, and another institution with formation of the Chemical Society © Royal Society of Chemistry “On the Preparation of Cyanide of which Warington was involved. Potassium and on its Applications”, Liebig firmly supported the which had been read at the project, writing that he believed Society’s meeting on 1 March “its foundation will be followed 1842. Both articles are
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