Work Package 1 is dedicated to researching Tanatar’s academic work. Through research in libraries and online, the aim is to systematically explore his scientific and academic legacy.
In analyzing the scientific legacy of Professor Iosif Isaakovich Tanatar (or Joseph Tanatar), several fundamental works stand out as having defined his academic authority and significantly influenced the development of geological science and industry in Ukraine.
Tanatar wrote primarily in the Russian language, but a considerable number of works were also written in German.
The Most Significant Works of Tanatar
Tables for the Determination of Minerals (1907 - 1908)
This work represented a major breakthrough for its time, as it was the first comprehensive mineral guide in the Russian Empire utilizing external characteristics alongside blowpipe and microscopic analysis. Only 28 years at the time, Tanatar received praise from scientific luminaries such as V. I. Vernadsky and F. Yu. Loewinson-Lessing. This publication laid the foundation for precise mineral diagnostics, which later allowed Tanatar to identify more than 80 new rock types in the Kryvyi Rih (russ. Krivoy Rog) region.
Petrographic Studies in the Small Caucasus (1911)
His dissertation Petrographic Studies in the Small Caucasus was written in 1911. As it is kept in a library in Vienna, we were unable to take a closer look at it.
Geochemistry as the Basis of the Doctrine of Mineral Resources (1932)
This book was the first work on geochemistry published in the Soviet Union that treated the discipline as a prerequisite for mineral prospecting. Tanatar was a pioneer and a dedicated popularizer of the ideas of Victor Moritz Goldschmidt, bringing advanced European geochemical analysis methods to Ukrainian geology.
Mineral Identifier under the Microscope (1935)
The significance of this work is highlighted by the fact that during the International Geological Congress in Moscow (1937), the organizing committee recommended it for translation and publication in Spanish and German. At that time, it was the only complete compilation in the country detailing the optical properties of rock-forming minerals organized by genetic grouping.
Foundations of the Doctrine of Ore Deposits (1950, 1959)
This substantial textbook was the culmination of the scientist’s long-standing research and the scientific school he
founded. In it, Tanatar systematized knowledge regarding the formation of deposits based on geochemistry and structural geology. The work was highly regarded by peers, and its practical value was so immense that geologists from remote regions of the Soviet Union personally petitioned publishers for its reissue.
Tanatars' Works
Tanatar's Fieldwork: Just a Quick Detour...
Tanatar undertook many research expeditions—mainly in what are now the southern and eastern regions of Ukraine. During these expeditions, he conducted intensive studies on the formation of iron ores and geological structures, as well as on various mineral deposits (e.g., coal, manganese and copper ores, and salts). However, he also traveled to what is now Russia and even as far as Georgia and Armenia, where he published a report on the findings of “a brief detour” taken during a research expedition to study the geology of the Russian-Armenian Highlands.
The Establishment of the Scientific School of Geological Ore Research
The school was officially founded in 1914, when J.J Tanatar was appointed head of the newly established Department of Applied Geology (now the Department of Geology and Mineral Exploration), a position he held for 44 years. J.J Tanatar raised the study of ore formation to a new scientific and experimental level, being the first to apply petrographic and geochemical methods to the study of iron ores.
The Most Distinguished Academic Followers
Among the numerous graduates of Joseph Tatar's academic school, which included eight doctors of science and over 40 candidates of science, sources highlight several figures whose achievements proved pivotal for geological science and industry.
The following scientists are considered the most outstanding followers and continuers of the traditions of Tanatar’s school:
- Mykola Semenko: Academician of the Academy of Sciences of the Ukrainian SSR and its Vice-President for 20 years. He was the founder and first director of the Institute of Geochemistry and Physics of Minerals, where he established his own school of isotope geochemistry and geochronology. His scientific legacy comprises over 600 works.
- Yakov Belyevtsev: Academician of the Academy of Sciences of the Ukrainian SSR, credited with the theory of metamorphogenic ore formation. His main practical achievement was the discovery of the Pervomaisky and Zhovtorichensky uranium
deposits, for which he received the Stalin Prize, First Class. He also devised a scheme for the stratigraphic division of the rocks of the Kryvyi Rih structure, which remains in use to this day. - Borys Chernyshev: An outstanding geologist and palaeontologist, elected a full member of the Academy of Sciences of the Ukrainian SSR. He attained high academic ranks even during his teacher’s lifetime.
- Pavlo Kanibolotskyi: A professor who became a renowned researcher of the Kryvbas region and rector of Chernivtsi State University. He maintained a close personal bond with Tananatar throughout his life.
- Viktor Kravchenko: Professor and founder of the school for the comprehensive study of Precambrian iron-bearing formations. He is known as the discoverer of theCharo-Tokinsky iron ore basin in Yakutia.
- Yurii Polkanov: Academician of the Academy of Technological Sciences of Ukraine, winner of the State Prize. He discovered the diamond-bearing nature of Ukraine’s sandy deposits and titanium- zirconium placers; the mineral polkanovite is named in his honor.
- Mykola Domoratskyi: Associate Professor who developed a unique methodology for petrochemical calculations, which has been included in the world’s reference literature.
His students referred to J.J. Tanatar as their ‘scientific father’, noting that he not only imparted knowledge but also shaped them as individuals through direct communication, discussions and collaborative work on complex geological problems!
