A Broad Field of Activities

Germany at that time consisted of a number of independent states. Gottingen was situated in Hannover. The authorities of the state considered it important to inspect the pharmacies, and Friedrich Stromeyer was in 1816 designated to supervisor. The duty was combined with the professorship at the university. 

The superintendence of the pharmacies led to Stromeyer s discovery of the element cadmium. He himself described the discovery in a letter, dated 1817, to his colleague. Dr J. S. C. Schweiggerh (cited from Mary Weeks)  

As I was last harvest inspecting the apothecaries shops in the principality of Hildesheim, in consequence with the general inspection of the apothecaries of the kingdom having been entrusted to me by our most gracious Regency, 

1 observed in several of them, instead of the proper oxide of zinc, carbonate of zinc, which had almost entirely been procured from the chemical manufactory at Saltzgitter. This carbonate of zinc had a dazzling white color, inclining to orange, though no sensible portion of iron or lead could be detected in it. 

When 1 afterwards visited Salzgitter, during the course of this journey, and went to the chemical manufactory from which the carbonate of zinc had been procured and when I expressed my surprise that carbonate of zinc should be sold instead of oxide of zinc, Mr. Jost, who has the charge of the pharmaceutical department of the manufactory, informed me that the reason was, that their carbonate of zinc, when exposed to a red heat, always assumed a yellow color, and was on that account supposed to contain iron, though the greatest care had been taken beforehand to free the zinc from iron, and though it was impossible to detect any iron in the oxide of zinc itself. 

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