George Kunz
The Tiffany gem expert who traded and studied meteorites, bought pieces of Brenham and named the mineral moissanite.
Key facts
- Born
- 1856
- Died
- 1932
- Nationality
- American
- Field
- Gem expert and mineralogist
George Frederick Kunz taught himself mineralogy as a boy in New York and became chief gem expert at Tiffany and Company, the jewellers, when he was only in his twenties. He travelled widely to find gemstones, and the pink mineral kunzite is named after him.
Kunz was also one of the most active meteorite traders and writers of his time. He bought and described many meteorites, published reports on new falls and finds, and helped place specimens in museums. In 1890 he obtained several large masses of the Brenham pallasite from Kansas, discovered on Eliza Kimberly's farm, and sold them on to museums and universities.
In 1905 Kunz gave the name moissanite to natural silicon carbide, which Henri Moissan had found in the Canyon Diablo iron meteorite. He also wrote about the history and folklore of stones, including meteorites worshipped as sacred.
Kunz built large collections of gems and minerals for American museums, especially the American Museum of Natural History in New York, and his knowledge helped turn meteorites into objects of study and display rather than curiosities.
On the timeline
See more
The Brenham meteoriteThe Canyon Diablo meteorite