STASZIC, Stanislaw

From 1779 to 1781, S. studied natural science at the Paris College de France. His principal field of interest was geology, which had at that time developed into an independent discipline. After returning to Poland, he travelled across the country and was dedicated to geological and geographical research. He was a cofounder of field research in Poland. Between 1802 and 1807, S. researched the geological structure of the Carpathians from the Polish side in detail, as well as the Hungarian and Austrian sides.
In 1786, he translated the known work Epochs of Nature, which had been written by J. P. Buffon; his translation also contained a polemics against the epoch theory, as proposed by Buffon. He reaped success in the world of science with the discussion on melanite from the regions around Krzeszowice, which appeared in France in 1807, and two years later also in Germany. Similarly to his predecessors, J. E. Guettard and J. J. Faber, S. adhered to the diluvial theory on the origin of rocks in the territory of Poland. Based on the suppositions of this theory, he formed an analytical and synthetic adaptation of Poland's geology in his work of 1815, On the Mineral Riches of the Carpathians and Other Mountains and Flatlands of Poland. Additionally, he created numerous geological maps entitled Carta geologica totius Poloniae, Moldawiae, Transylwaniae et partis Hungariae et Valachiae, inventa per Staszic, which depicted numerous mineral riches, particularly oil wells and mineral springs. In his maps, he also included archaeological sites, thus becoming a pioneer of the synchronous scientific method. This was the first scientific textbook for geology and mineralogy with emphasis on the Carpathians in Poland. It was the first to illustrate the ichthyological outline of the lakes in the Tatra, which is why he is considered the father of limnology. S. is also known as the first explorer of vegetation, and as a pioneer of nature protection in this area.
He presented his philosophical views in 1819/20, in the book Humankind, which describes the process of the emancipation of humankind, and offers the foundations for a materialistic view of the world.
In 1800, he became a member of the Warsaw Society of Friends of Science, and remained its representative from 1808 until his death. His great achievement was the foundation of the Academy of Mining in Kielce in 1815, and the foundation of a mining corpus, a kind of mining organisation. He also founded the first agricultural society in Hrubieszow.
In Poland, S. showed how to overcome backwardness by modernising mining and metallurgy, which he organised following the Saxon example. For this reason, he is deemed a cofounder of Polish metallurgy in the Kielce and Dąbrowa regions. In 1823, 37 iron ore pits, 9 blast furnaces, 32 ventilation houses, and 116 ironworks were already in operation.
In 1819, S. planned a project for the construction of large industrial plants in the centre of the ore deposits in Białogonie near Kielce, with 15 furnaces for melting copper and lead, for extracting silver, and for producing brass. Very early on, he pointed out the significance of black coal to the economic development in the Dąbrowa region.