Former GIA Governor George Rossman Dies at 81

George Rossman, a former member of the board of governors at the Gemological Institute of America (GIA), died aged 81 on February 6, the company said Wednesday.

Aside from that post, which he held from 1995 to 2007, Rossman also advised GIA researchers for more than five decades. He wrote numerous influential articles for GIA’s professional journal, Gems & Gemology, as well as serving on the publication’s editorial review board.

“George was a skilled and passionate scientist, a dedicated and talented educator, and a mentor to generations of GIA scientists,” said GIA executive vice president Tom Moses.  

Rossman was as professor of mineralogy, emeritus, at the California Institute of Technology, where he dedicated his time to teaching. He was a leading expert on mineral spectroscopy and the origins of color in minerals. With collaborators, he discovered several minerals, including the tourmaline-type material rossmanite, named in his honor.

Image: George Rossman. (Wikipedia)