When Was Apatite First Discovered?

Apatite was the first calcium phosphate recognized as mineral specie. It was discovered in 1786 by Abraham Gottlob and named by him as “Apatao”. From the ancient greek that means “to mislead” because it had previously been confused for other minerals, namely beryl, tourmaline, chrysolite, amethyst, fluorite, etc.

When was apatite found?

Apatite Discovery

Apatite was not used extensively in the ancient world with only a few beads and amulets discovered over the years from archaeological digs in the Middle-East and in Africa but its modern history began in 1786 when it was studied and named by German geologist, Gottlob Werner.

Who discovered apatite?

The mineral apatite was first recognized by German geologist Abraham Gottlob Werner (1950–1817) and named in 1786 from Greek word “ apatao ” (απα'ταω, which means to mislead, to cheat, or to deceive because the mineral was often mistaken for other species, e.g. mineral beryl (Be₃Al₂Si₆O₁₈, space group P₆/MCC)) [43],[44 ...