Claude-Henri Gorceix


Claude-Henri Gorceix was a French mineralogist born in Saint-Denis-des-Murs, Haute-Vienne.
From 1863 to 1866 he studied at the École Normale Supérieure of Paris, earning a bachelor's degree in physical sciences and mathematics. Later he taught classes at the Lycée d'Angoulême and at the French School at Athens.
In 1876 he founded the Escola de Minas in Ouro Preto, Brazil, and served as its first director. The Escola de Minas offered classes in mineralogy, geology, physics and chemistry. In 1896 he was tasked by the state of Minas Gerais to help establish agricultural education.
The mineral gorceixite is named in his honor, as is Gorceixia, a genus of flowering plants native to Brazil. In 1887 he won the Prix Delesse from the French Academy of Sciences.

Selected works