The Earth is 4,6 billion years old. The expanding forces of our Planet's depth are continuously altering its surface: volcanoes, mountain-raising forces, collisions of crustal plates create on its face newer and newer creases which are smoothed down by such beneficial cosmetics as gravity, wind, rivers and autumn rains.
    For institutions to be formed in Hungary to examine the secrets of the Earth, driven by the ancient desire of knowledge and to exploit the economic values of experience, forces pointing beyond science had to break axis.
    To establish the Hungarian Geological Society in 1848 the independence-demanding strength of the Reform Age was essential.
    In order that, following the proposal of István Gorove, Minister of Agriculture, Industry and Commerce, the Hungarian Royal Department of Geology could be established in the Ministry in 1868, the social-political atmosphere of the Compromise was fundamental. The fruits of independence had by then ripened. Miksa Hantken, Károly Hofmann, Beno Winkler, János Böckh and Antal Koch set to lay the foundations with such big enthusiasm that already in the following year István Gorove found it advisable to propose the King the establishment of a permanent institution, the first director of which became Miksa Hantken.
    The strength of the initial velocity lasted for many and more decades, and the love of the trade and the country made the initiative survive and, what is more, develop. The thorough geological study, the enrichment of collections and of the library, the setting up of laboratories was getting on with undiminished energy in spite of the fact that the institute had to work in several buildings, often in small, rented flats, having forced to move five times.
    In 1882 Hantken was offered a university professorship and his place was taken over by a genuine manager-scientist, János Böckh, whose job was to create a worthy place for the Institute. In executing this he was so successful that, quoting Lajos Lóczy, "… no partner institute in the whole world can come up with similar results".