Presented by Olaf Medenbach.

Synopsis

Mineralogy is a classical natural science and deals with the physical and chemical properties of minerals and synthetic crystals and materials. Though it might be defined as a branch of solid-state physics, the scientific instruments used in mineralogical basic research and routine work are peculiar – most of them were especially designed for mineralogical use and exclusively applied in this field.

The Medenbach collection of antique mineralogical instruments was accumulated over a period of more than 30 years. It comprises more than 450 instruments and accessories ranging from the first contact goniometers from the 18^th century to the highly sophisticated theodolite-microscopes of the early 20^th century.

Biography

Olaf Medenbach is a professional mineralogist (retired) working for the Ruhr-University in Bochum/Germany. For over 40 years he has collected and restored scientific instruments with a special focus on mineralogical apparatus.