Adapted from an image (public domain), via Wikimedia Commons.
1760–1852
Johan Gadolin
Finnish chemist whose analysis of a black rock from a Swedish quarry opened up the chemistry of the rare earths.
Elements
39YYttrium
1794
In 1794 Johan Gadolin, in Finland, analysed a black rock from a quarry at Ytterby, near Stockholm, and found a new oxide. It was the first of the rare earths, and the element was named yttrium after the village.
64GdGadolinium
1880
In 1880 Jean Charles Galissard de Marignac, in Geneva, separated a new rare earth from didymium. It was named gadolinium, after the mineral gadolinite and so after Johan Gadolin.
Keep exploring
Where the dates and stories on this page come from; each event on the timeline links to its own source.
- Johan GadolinEncyclopaedia Britannica
- YttriumRoyal Society of Chemistry
- GadoliniumRoyal Society of Chemistry
- Johan GadolinWikipedia