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Authorised form of nameGeoffroy; Etienne Francois (1672 - 1731); physician and chemist
Other forms of nameGeoffroy the Elder (l’Aîné)
Dates1672 - 1731
NationalityFrench
Place of birthParis, Île-de-France, France, Europe
Date of birth13 February 1672
Place of deathParis, Île-de-France, France, Europe
Date of death06 January 1731
OccupationApothecary; Physician
Research fieldChemistry
Medicine
ActivityEducation:
Montpellier; qualified as an apothecary (1694); Paris; MD (1704)
Career:
Travelled to England with the Comte de Tallard, Ambassador Extraordinary to Charles II (1698); travelled to Holland; accompanied the Abbe de Louvois to Italy as his personal physician; corresponded with Sir Hans Sloane (FRS 1685) on behalf of the Academie des Sciences; travelled to Italy (1700); Professor of Chemistry, Jardin du Roi (1707-1730); Professor of Pharmacy and Medicine, College de France (1709-death); Dean of the Faculty of Medicine, Paris (1726-1729)
Memberships:
Academie Royale des Sciences (1699)
Membership categoryFellow
Date of election06/07/1698
Age at election26
ProposerSir Hans Sloane
RelationshipsParents: Mathieu-François Geoffroy, Apothecary, of Paris, Louise (née Devaux)
Siblings: Claude Joseph Geoffroy (FRS 1715)
Spouse: Barbe Angélique Lézier (1705)
Children: Étienne Louis Geoffroy (1725-1810), also Dean of the Faculty of Medicine and Professor of Medicine at the College de France; two daughters
OtherInfoGeoffroy promoted the work of English and German chemists in France but also facilitated regular exchanges among European scientists. As a Royal Society member, he shared Parisian advancements with English colleagues and presented English work to the academicians. In chemistry, Geoffroy combined traditional alchemical ideas with innovation, introducing a groundbreaking method of tabulating substances with constant ratios, known as the "table of affinities." This classification system significantly influenced chemical work for over a century, marking a shift from substantialism to defining substances by their circulation in various combinations.
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SourceSources:
Bulloch's Roll; DSB; Hunter; NBG; DBF
References:
Jean Jacquot, 'Sir Hans Sloane and French Men of Science' in NR 1953 vol 10 pp 85-98
J S Rowlinson, 'Le Sage's Essai de chymie mechanique' in NR 2003 vol 57 pp 35-45
Notes:
Proposed by Sir Hans Sloane. Spelling 'Etienne' from Hunter and DSB; 'Estienne' appears in both R and index to BR.
Virtual International Authority Filehttp://viaf.org/viaf/17213123
CodeNA8417
Archives associated with this Fellow
RefNoTitleDate
CLP/11i/41Paper, 'Two experiments of liquids' by Mr [Etienne Francois] Geoffroy[1690s]
EL/G1/69Letter, from Monsieur Geoffroy to Hans Sloane, dated at Paris10 June 1699
EL/G1/70Letter, from Monsieur Geoffroy to Hans Sloane, dated at Paris9 September 1699
EL/G1/71Letter, from Monsieur Geoffroy to Hans Sloane, dated at Paris1700
EL/G1/72Letter, from Monsieur Geoffroy to Hans Sloane, dated at Paris28 May 1700
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