Paul Fourmarier | |
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Born | |
Died | 20 January 1970 | (aged 92)
Alma mater | University of Liège, Wallonia, Belgium |
Known for | study of fold structures and cleavage, description the overthrust nappes |
Awards |
Penrose Gold Medal (1952), Wollaston Medal (1957) |
Scientific career | |
Fields | Geology, tectonics |
Paul Frédéric Joseph Fourmarier (1877—1970) was a Belgian geologist and specialist in tectonics and stratigraphy, [1] after whom the Fourmarierite mineral is named. [2]
Fourmarier was born in La Hulpe, Province of Brabant, Belgium and studied at the University of Liège, graduating in 1899. He became a professor of geology at the university in 1920. [1]
He won the Wollaston Medal in 1957 [3] and the Penrose Gold Medal in 1952. [4]
His specialist area was the study of fold structures and cleavage and he described the overthrust nappes in the Ardennes. [1] Fourmarier was much involved in the geology of his native Belgium, as well as Zaire (then the Belgian Congo) and other African places. He also worked on continental drift. [1]
An award named after him, the Fourmarier Prize, was established. [5] In addition, a secondary uranium-lead mineral, fourmarierite, was named in his memory. [2]