Abstract
Of very few men can it be said that they played the major part in founding a new branch of science, but since Sir Lawrence Bragg achieved this distinction at the outset of his career he had the unique satisfaction of witnessing the impact of X-ray analysis upon the studies of matter from the simplest ionic compounds and metals through the increasing complexities of minerals to the immense molecules of the living cell. Not that he was a bystander only, for his scientific curiosity led him to make major contributions in most of these fields. He recognized the importance of a personal involvement in the development of ideas and wrote that “ … science is unlike the arts, where the value of original thought is often enhanced by time. Science is like a coral reef, alive only on the growing surface.” This philosophy stimulated him throughout his life.