Claim: Cryolite was first described in 1798 by Danish veterinarian and physician Peder Christian Ablidgaard and was historically used as an ore of aluminum.
Evidence: Cryolite was first described in 1798 by Danish veterinarian and physician Peder Christian Abildgaard (1740–1801); it was obtained from a deposit of it in Ivigtut and nearby Arsuk Fjord, Southwest Greenland. It was historically used as an ore of aluminium and later in the electrolytic processing of the aluminium-rich oxide ore bauxite (itself a combination of aluminium oxide minerals such as gibbsite, boehmite and diaspore).