Thomas Graham
William Brodie, RSA (1815-1881)
1871; unveiled 1872
Bronze on a grey granite pedestal
George Square, Glasgow
Thomas Graham was a Glasgow-born chemist who became Professor of Chemistry at the Andersonian Institution, where David Livingstone was among his students. He then took the Chair of Chemistry at University College, London, one of the many Scots to fill important positions at UCL in those early days. He established "Graham's Law" about the diffusion of gases, and is widely considered "the father of colloid chemistry" (see McKenzie 139). Later he became Master of the Mint. His work on the composition of meteorites was also important. He is shown wearing academic dress (the robes of Doctor of Civil Law, Oxford University). The book he holds, and rests on with one arm, shows laboratory equipment on its cover. Brodie is said to have caught his likeness admirably.
Photograph, caption and commentary by Jacqueline Banerjee, 2009