Background
He was born at Munich, Germany on the 19th of July 1803.
He was born at Munich, Germany on the 19th of July 1803.
He studied chemistry and mineralogy at Landshut (1820 - 1823).
After studies he became professor of mineralogy in 1826 at the University of Munich and in 1856 was appointed first curator of the Bavarian State collection of minerals. He introduced some new methods of mineral analyses, and in 1835 invented the stauroscope for the study of the optical properties of crystals. He contributed numerous papers to scientific journals, and described many new minerals.
His best known work is a short story which was later used as base for the popular Bavarian stage play Der Brandner Kasper. The play was adapted 1974 for the stage by a grand nephew of Kobell, Kurt Wilhelm.
His publications: Charakteristik der Mineralien (2 vols. 1830 - 1831); Tafeln zur Bestimmung der Mineralien &c. (1833; and later editions, ed. 12, by K. Oebbeke, 1884); Grundzilge der Mineralogie (1838) Geschichte der Mineralogie von 1650-1860.
His greatest contributions were new methods in crystallography. Besides his work as a mineralogist, Kobell is also famous for writing many short stories and poems in the Bavarian dialect of Upper Bavaria. He pioneered as well early photographic and photochemistry procedures together with Carl August von Steinheil.
Kobell's writing shows great comic awareness and the ability to combine a rich sense of fantasy with realism.
