Arthur Herbert Church facts for kids
Sir Arthur Herbert Church was a smart British scientist. He was born in 1834 and died in 1915. He was a chemist who studied pottery, rocks, and paint. He found a special red color called turacin in 1869. He also discovered new minerals, including one that contained cerium. Sir Arthur was also a good artist. He taught chemistry at two important colleges. He wrote many books about chemistry in farming, art, and everyday life.
Contents
Growing Up and Early Studies
Arthur Church was born in London, England. His father, John Thomas Church, was a lawyer. From a young age, Arthur was interested in both science and art.
He studied at King's College London. Then, from 1851 to 1855, he went to the Royal College of Chemistry. There, he studied with a famous scientist named A.W. Hofmann. He even worked with William Henry Perkin, who later became very famous for discovering new dyes. Together, they published Arthur's first science paper.
After that, Arthur spent four more years at Lincoln College, Oxford. He earned his degree in 1859. He then opened his own science lab in London. Besides his chemistry work, he also painted beautiful landscapes. His paintings were shown at The Royal Academy in 1854.
Teaching at the Agricultural College
From 1863 to 1879, Sir Arthur worked as a professor at the Royal Agricultural College in Cirencester. He also helped manage the Cirencester Museum, which had many ancient Roman items.
His work at the college led him to study many different things. He analyzed plants, soil, and minerals. He also looked at gemstones, fancy porcelain, and paint colors.
Discovering Turacin
One interesting discovery happened when he studied a red bird from West Africa. The bird was a Tauraco, and its feathers had a bright red color. A friend, W.B. Tegetmeier, showed him the bird. Sir Arthur found that the red color, which he named turacin, contained copper. He then looked at the bird's food and found copper in the bananas it ate. He also discovered aluminum in the ashes of different plants.
Finding New Minerals
Sir Arthur also found a new mineral in Cornwall, England. This mineral contained cerium phosphate. He named this new mineral "Churchite" after himself.
Professor at the Royal Academy
In 1879, Sir Arthur Church became the first professor of chemistry at the Royal Academy of Arts. Here, he focused on things like paint colors, glazes used in pottery, and other art materials.
He became a fellow of the Royal Society in 1888. This is a very important group for scientists. Because he was a skilled painter and knew a lot about paint chemistry, he was chosen to help fix old paintings and wall murals at the Palace of Westminster.
In 1901, he became a member of the American Antiquarian Society. In 1909, he was given a special honor and became a KCVO. Sir Arthur Church passed away in 1915. He is buried in Richmond Cemetery. He was married to Jemima Pope.
