Robert Mallet

Robert Mallet FRS MRIA
Born	(1810-06-03)3 June 1810 Dublin, Ireland
Died	5 November 1881(1881-11-05) (aged 71) Stockwell, London, England
Resting place	West Norwood Cemetery, London
Alma mater	Trinity College, Dublin (B.Sc., 1830)
Known for	Seismology
Children	John Mallet Frederick Richard Mallet
Awards	FRS (1854) Telford Medal (1859) Cunningham Medal (1862) Wollaston Medal (1877)
Scientific career
Fields	Geophysics, Engineering
Institutions	British Association for the Advancement of Science Royal Geological Society of Ireland Royal Society

Robert Mallet FRS MRIA (3 June 1810 – 5 November 1881) was an Irish geophysicist, civil engineer, and inventor who distinguished himself by pioneering research concerning earthquakes, and is sometimes regarded as the father of seismology. For his major foundational work in seismology, he received the Telford Medal in 1859, the Cunningham Medal in 1862, the Wollaston Medal in 1877, and also became a member of the Royal Society in 1854.

Mallet began his career as an apprentice in his father's iron foundry company and grew the family business into one of the largest engineering firms in Ireland. He started researching in the study of earthquakes during his time at various academies, including the Royal Irish Academy in 1832, the British Association for the Advancement of Science in 1835, and the Royal Geological Society of Ireland in 1838. His son, Frederick Richard Mallet, was also a geologist who worked in India.

He retired in the 1870s, after becoming blind for the last seven years of his life, and died near London in 1881. He was buried at West Norwood Cemetery.