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Mervyn Herbert Nevil Story - Maskelyne

1911 Encyclopedia Britannica

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"STORY - MASKELYNE, MERVYN HERBERT Nevil (1823-1911), English mineralogist, was born near Wroughton, Wilts, Sept. 3 1823; he was descended on the mother's side from Nevil Maskelyne, the Astronomer Royal. He was educated at Bruton grammar school and Wadham College, Oxford, and studied for the bar, but in 1850 was invited to deliver lectures at Oxford on minerals, where he stipulated for a chemical laboratory, then a complete novelty in the university. He was prominent in the struggle over the proposal to erect a museum of science and in 1856 became professor of mineralogy with a laboratory in the new museum; but from 1857 he combined the work with the keepership of the minerals at the British Museum and resided in London. In 1880 he resigned this post, but retained his Oxford professorship until 1895. He had inherited a Wiltshire estate from his father, and in 1880 he entered Parliament as Liberal member for Cricklade. In 1885 he was reelected for N. Wilts as a Liberal Unionist and sat until 1892. He studied especially crystallography, meteorites and gem-stones, and was the author of many scientific papers, and of a book On the Morphology of Crystals. He also possessed a valuable collection of antique gems. He died at Bass Down, near Swindon, May 20 1911.