The Granite Controversy — H. H. Read (1957)

Geological Addresses Illustrating the Evolution of a Disputant

Published in 1957, H. H. Read's The Granite Controversy documents one of the great geological arguments of the twentieth century: Where does granite come from?

Today granite is ordinarily introduced as an igneous rock formed through the crystallization of magma. During the first half of the twentieth century, however, its origin was the subject of an intense international debate. One group of geologists emphasized molten magma, while others argued that existing rocks could be transformed into granite through chemical replacement and metamorphic processes—a concept generally associated with granitization.

The dispute became known as the Granite Controversy.

British geologist Herbert Harold Read (1889–1970) was one of the major figures in this debate. A Fellow of the Royal Society and professor of geology at Imperial College London, Read became particularly influential through his studies of metamorphism, granites and the complex relationship between metamorphic and igneous processes.

This volume collects geological addresses delivered by Read between 1939 and 1954, allowing the reader to follow his thinking as the controversy developed. Read deliberately subtitled the book Geological Addresses Illustrating the Evolution of a Disputant, making it something unusual among scientific monographs: a record not merely of a scientific theory, but of a scientist's changing position during an active intellectual dispute.

Read became famous for the phrase "there are granites and granites," reflecting his view that rocks classified together as granite need not necessarily share a single simple origin.

The debate represented a transitional period in geology. Experimental petrology, geochemistry and increasingly sophisticated studies of crustal melting eventually established a much clearer understanding of granite formation, while some processes emphasized during the granitization controversy—particularly partial melting, metasomatism and interaction between magmatic and metamorphic systems—remain important parts of modern petrology.

Published just before plate tectonics revolutionized geology during the 1960s, The Granite Controversy captures Earth science at the end of an earlier era of fundamental debate over how the continental crust forms and changes.

This is the first edition, published in 1957, containing 430 pages.

Author: H. H. Read, F.R.S.
Title: The Granite Controversy: Geological Addresses Illustrating the Evolution of a Disputant
Publisher: Interscience Publishers, New York
Year: 1957
Edition: First Edition
Length: xix + 430 pages
Subject: Geology / Petrology / Granite / Metamorphism / History of Science

Condition: Vintage ex-library hardcover with institutional stamps and markings. This copy bears provenance from the Pan American Petroleum research library. Blue cloth binding appears structurally sound with expected signs of age and institutional use. Interior shows age-related toning and library markings. Please refer to photographs for exact condition.

An especially interesting volume for collectors of geology and the history of science: an original first-edition account written by one of the principal participants in a major twentieth-century scientific controversy.