Joachim Gans

Joachim Gans (other spellings: Jeochim, Jochim, Gaunz, Ganse, Gaunse) was a Bohemian mining expert and renowned for being the first recorded Jew in North America.

Biography

Early life

Gans was born in Prague, Kingdom of Bohemia, and therefore was most likely related to David Gans, who settled there in 1564.

England

He is first mentioned in his professional capacity at Keswick, Cumberland, in 1581.

He introduced a new process for the "making of Copper, vitriall, and Coppris, and smeltinge of Copper and leade ures." Gans figured in the English state papers of the reign of Elizabeth I and a full description of his operations is preserved in these documents, printed by Donald. Gans's most dramatic scientific discovery was to reduce the time to purify a batch of copper ore from sixteen weeks to just four days. Additionally, Gans was able to use the impurities removed from the copper ore in textile mordants.

Colonization of America

Gans became the first Bohemian and the first recorded Jew in colonial America when, in 1584, Sir Walter Raleigh recruited him for an expedition to found a permanent settlement in the Virginia territory of the New World.

Joachim

Joachim (/ˈdʒoʊ.əkɪm/; "he whom Yahweh has set up", Hebrew: יְהוֹיָקִים Yəhôyāqîm, Greek Ἰωακείμ Iōākeím) was the husband of Saint Anne and the father of Mary the mother of Jesus, according to the Catholic, Orthodox, and Anglican traditions. The story of Joachim and Anne first appears in the apocryphal Gospel of James. Joachim and Anne are not mentioned in the Bible. His feast day is July 26.

In Christian tradition

Since the genealogies of Jesus in Matthew and Luke do not explicitly name either of Mary's parents, but apparently name two different fathers for Saint Joseph, many scholars from John of Damascus (8th century), and particularly Protestant scholars, argue that the genealogy in Luke is actually the family tree of Mary, and that Heli is her father. To resolve the problem of Joseph having two fathers - one descended from Solomon, son of David, one descended from Nathan (son of David), traditions from the 7th century specify that Heli was a first cousin of Joachim.

Joachim (given name)

Joachim derives from the Hebrew Yehoyaqim (יְהוֹיָקִים) and means "raised by God".

People with the given name Joachim

Joachim (disambiguation)

Joachim was the husband of Saint Anne and the father of Mary, the mother of Jesus.

Joachim may also refer to:

See also