Frederic Mohs

Frederic Mohs was a Swiss mineralogist best known for developing the Mohs scale of mineral hardness in the early 19th century. This scale ranks ten common minerals from 1 to 10 based on their ability to scratch one another, with talc at the lowest (1) and diamond at the highest (10). It helps geologists, gemologists, and hobbyists understand the hardness of minerals, which can be important for identification and practical applications. Mohs' work contributed significantly to the field of mineralogy, providing a clear, comparative method for assessing mineral properties.