Dr. Kubassek János szerk.: A Kárpát-medence természeti értékei (Érd, 2004)
Dr. Péter Rózsa: Robert Townson (1762-1827): a pioneer scientific explorer of the Carpathian Basin
and mists which prevented the prospect, with the barrenness of the rocks, soon made me return to the mine: and here I had no inducement to stay; for these rocks were less barrens of alpine plants, and the mine ivas seen. It is only remarkable on account of its very elevated situation, which is the highest perhaps of any one in Europe. [...] The ore is native gold in a small vein of greyish white fat Quartz, but in so small a quantity that a guinea's worth of this gold has always cost two or three guineas: the vain is in granit. Having no motive to remain here, I hastened down to Vasetz. " 34 Special attention must be paid for barometric altimetry by Townson. 35 He met some Baron Gordon, the postmaster in Lőcse, who - as he noted - had made barometric measurement for a long time. On the basis of Gordon's data, Townson calculated the elevation of Lőcse above the level of the sea, and he bought a barometer by which he made several barometric measurements. He summarised his barometric altitude measurements in a graphic table (figure 9), the text contains only the calculated elevation data in yard. In a footnote, however, Townson described the process of calculation in details, where, as he wrote, he followed the method of Jean André Deluc (1727-1817). On the basis of his footnote, his calculation can be expressed by the following equation (RÓZSA, R-TAR, K., 1995): b=W 000(l# r lg> 2 )-(l6,75-f) 10 (m ^rW 215 where h is the calculated height; p l is air pressure at the reference point (Townson used the many years' air pressure for Lőcse) ; p 2 is the measured air pressure; and / is the annual mean temperature of the reference point in degrees of Reaumur (Townson supposed it to be 10 degrees of Reaumur for Lőcse). In some places he made more than one measurement, but he mentioned only one of them in the text, although he did not explain the reason for his choices. It is remarkable, however, that the selected one is the best in every case. Comparing his calculated elevation made on the identifiable sites to the real heights, it can be stated that his data approach the real ones surprisingly well (table 1): the difference range from -118 to + 104 m, and the relative heights determined him are relevant for every site. Moreover, if the data mentioned in the text are considered only, Townson's measurement will be even more correct since the differences will range from -118 to +59-
