Buch studied with
Alexander von Humboldt under
Abraham Gottlob Werner at the
mining school in
Freiberg, Saxony. He afterwards completed his education at the universities of
Halle and
Göttingen.
German and Italian explorations He began writing on geological topics early in life. His
Versuch einer mineralogischen Beschreibung von Landeck (Breslau, 1797) was translated into French (Paris, 1805), and into English as
Attempt at a Mineralogical Description of Landeck (Edinburgh, 1810). In 1802 he published
Entwurf einer geognostischen Beschreibung von Schlesien ("The
Geognosy of
Silesia"), which became the first volume of his
Geognostische Beobachtungen auf Reisen durch Deutschland und Italien ("Geognistic Observations while Travelling through Germany and Italy", see below). He was at this time a zealous upholder of the
Neptunian theory of Werner, with some modifications. In 1797, he met Humboldt at
Salzburg, and with him explored the geological formations of
Styria, and the adjoining
Alps. In the spring of 1798, Buch extended his excursions into
Italy, where his faith in the Neptunian theory was shaken. In his early works, he had advocated the aqueous origin of basaltic and other formations, but now he saw cause to abandon Werner's theory, and to recognize the volcanic origin of the
basalts. He saw
Vesuvius for the first time in 1799. Later, in 1805, he had the opportunity, along with Humboldt and
Gay Lussac, of witnessing its actual eruption. It was a remarkable eruption, and supplied Buch with data for refuting many erroneous ideas then entertained regarding volcanoes. In 1802 he examined the extinct volcanoes of
Auvergne in the south of
France. The aspect of the
Puy de Dôme, with its cone of
trachyte and its strata of basaltic lava, induced him to abandon as untenable the doctrines of Werner on the formation of these rocks. The results of all these geological travels were given to the world in the two volumes of his
Geognostische Beobachtungen (Berlin, 1802 and 1809).
Scandinavian explorations In 1806, Buch proceeded to
Scandinavia and spent two years in examining its physical constitution. Among other, he studied the
Oslo Graben, a map of which is on the cover of his book. This furnished the materials for his work entitled
Reise durch Norwegen und Lappland ("Travels in Norway and Lapland", Berlin, 1810). He made many important observations on the geography of plants, on climatology and on geology. He showed that many of the
erratic blocks on the North German plains must have come from Scandinavia. He also established the fact that the whole of
Sweden is slowly but continuously rising above the level of the sea from
Frederikshald (Halden) to
Åbo (Turku).
Canary Islands and the Atlantic In 1815 Buch visited the
Canary Islands in company with
Christen Smith, a Norwegian botanist. These volcanic isles furnished the starting point from which Buch commenced a regular course of study on the production and activity of volcanoes. This is attested by his standard work on the subject entitled
Physical Description of the Canary Isles (1825). His observations convinced him that these and other islands of the Atlantic owed their existence to volcanic action of the most intense kind, whereas the groups of islands in the South Sea were the remains of a pre-existing continent. During his time in the Canary Islands, he visited the Las Cañadas
Caldera on Tenerife and the
Caldera de Taburiente on La Palma. When he published his memoirs and observations about his excursion, he introduced the Spanish word "Caldera" (meaning "
Bowl") into the geological and scientific vocabulary. After his return from the Canaries he visited the basaltic group of the
Hebrides and the coasts of
Scotland and
Ireland. Buch's geological excursions, even in countries which he had repeatedly visited before, continued without interruption until a very advanced age: eight months before his death he visited the mountains of Auvergne, and on returning home he read a paper on the Jurassic formation before the Academy of Berlin. Humboldt, who had known him intimately for a period of more than sixty years, called him the greatest geologist of that period. Buch was unmarried and lived aloof from the world, entirely devoted to scientific pursuits. His excursions were always taken on foot, with a staff in his hand, and the large pockets of his overcoat filled with papers and geological instruments.
Evolution In the third edition of his
On the Origin of Species published in 1861,
Charles Darwin added a
Historical Sketch giving due credit to naturalists who had preceded him in publishing the opinion that species undergo modification, and that the existing forms of life have descended by true generation from pre-existing forms. According to Darwin: :The celebrated geologist and naturalist, Von Buch, in his excellent 'Description physique des Isles Canaries' (1836, p. 147), clearly expresses his belief that varieties slowly become changed into permanent species, which are no longer capable of intercrossing. Evolutionary biologist
Ernst Mayr has written that Buch was the first naturalist to suggest
geographic speciation, in 1825. == Memberships and honors ==