Gabor Dessau obtained his Libera Docenza (1937) from the University of Rome. His specialization was in economic geology. He was Professor, Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra dell’ University, Italy; Director, Geological and Geophysical Section, Italian General Mining Inspectorate, Addis Ababa (1938-39); State Geologist and Mining Engineer, Jaipur State (1943-45); Geophysicist in-charge, Geological Survey of India, Kolkata (1945-48); Geologist, Geological Survey of Italy, Rome (1949-53); Lecturer, Economic Geology, University of Naples (1951-55); UNESCO Technical Assistance Expert, Technion, Israel Institute of Technology, Hafia, Israel (1955-57); Lecturer, Economic Geology, University of Pisa (1957-59, 1961-70); Research Fellow, Harvard University, USA (1960); and Full Professor, Economic Geology, University of Pisa (1970-82).

Academic and Research Achievements: Dessau carried out field and laboratory work (isotopic research with ML Jensen) on the Sicilian sulphur deposits, confirming their origin through bacterial reduction of calcium sulphate in marine lagoons; and field and microscopic investigations on Italian ore deposits (lead, zinc, mercury, antimony, etc.) within the framework of their geological setting.

Awards and Honours: Dessau was a Member of Geological and Mineralogical Society of Italy; Swiss and French Geological and Mineralogical Societies; Mining, Geological and Metallurgical Institute of India; Society of Economic Geologists (Vice-President for Europe, 1964); Society of Exploration Geophysicists; American Geophysical Union; European Association of Exploration Geophysicists; Canadian Institute of Mining; and Metallurgy and Geochemical Society of Japan.