William F. Foshag's papers, circa 1935-1949 : Guatemalan jades, analyses.

Abstract

This folder is part of the papers of William F. Foshag (1894-1956). He was a geologist who specialized in the study of the geology and mineralogy of Mexico. In 1919 he became Assistant Curator at the United States National Museum's Division of Mineralogy and Petrology. From 1929 to 1941 he served as Curator of the Division of Physical and Chemical Geology (Systematic and Applied), and from 1929 to 1948 was also Curator of the Division of Mineralogy and Petrology. From 1948 to 1956, Foshag was Head Curator of the Department of Geology and Acting Curator of the Division of Mineralogy and Petrology. Between 1926 and 1941, Foshag made several collecting trips to Mexico under the auspices of the Smithsonian's Roebling Fund. While serving as a representative of the United States Geological Survey in its cooperative work with the Mexican government, Foshag was able to study the eruption of the Paricutin Volcano in 1943. He made subsequent visits to Paricutin in 1944 and 1945 to observe the volcano. In 1949, Foshag was commissioned by the Guatemalan government to survey ancient jade objects from Central America. The present folder includes handwritten chemical analyses of jade and jadeite samples. The notes show the chemical composition of samples from various locations, including Burma, the mineral composition of mining sites, and optical properties of analyzed jades. They are accompanied by a printed analysis of jade from Guatemala and Mexico, ordered by Dr. Foshag from Michael Fleischer, from the U. S. Dept. of the Interior Geological Survey.

Date Range

1935-1952

Start Date

1935

End Date

1952

Access Information

Many of SIA's holdings are located off-site, and advance notice is recommended to consult a collection. Please email the SIA Reference Team at osiaref@si.edu.

Topic

• Metamorphic rocks
• Geology
• Mineralogy
• Jade--Guatemala
• Jadeite (Petrology)

Place

• Myanmar
• Guatemala
• Mexico

Form/Genre

• Fieldbook record
• Field notes
• Research notes

Accession #

SIA Acc. 91-144

Collection name

William F. Foshag papers, circa 1935-1949

Physical Description

1 folder

Physical Location

Smithsonian Institution Archives

Sublocation

Box 2, folder 2