JCMF
JCMF

Who was Maxwell? Find out here.

Welcome to the James Clerk Maxwell Foundation Website


James Clerk Maxwell with his colour wheel.

Please explore our website to find out more about James Clerk Maxwell, the great Scottish natural philosopher (physicist in modern usage), and the activities of the JCM Foundation.

We have a wealth of information about Maxwell and his work with many articles, video documentaries, audio documentaries, posters and other documents available in our Resources section as well as a picture gallery site. Please explore the links on this page and in the menu at the top of each page.

We are a small charity, and need to raise funds for our charitable activities promoting the achievements of James Clerk Maxwell. Please follow the link if you would like to support us in that work.



14 India Street Tours. Please book ahead: booking details.

13 June 2024 - James Clerk Maxwell's 193nd anniversary

ICIAM 2023 Maxwell Prize
Awarded to Weinan E for his seminal contributions to applied mathematics and in particular on analysis and application of machine learning algorithms, multi-scale modeling, the modeling of rare events and stochastic partial differential equations. The prize is part-funded by the JCM Foundation. Full details.
Cindy Pom's Newsthink channel has produced a video about Maxwell's life and work.
(YouTube, 11'23". Also contains some commercial advertising material at the start and end.)
Feb 2023 - Newsletter No. 19 - Dark matter: a cosmic ghost story
July 2022 - Newsletter No. 18 - An introduction to black holes
June 2022 - Newsletter No. 17 - Some advances in pure mathematics in the 19th century

Recent Past Events


23-24 September 2023 - Doors Open Days at 14 India Street, Edinburgh, Maxwell's birthplace. Details.

5 November 2022 - Parton Kirk. Talk by Martin Hendry, Scotland's Einstein: the life and legacy of James Clerk Maxwell. Details and Press Release.

June 2022 - New Virtual Tour of Maxwell's UK Locations Launched

We have a new interactive version of a virtual tour of UK locations associated with Maxwell using Google Earth for the full 3D experience.


11 April 2022 - Edinburgh Science Festival Talk - Scotland's Einstein

Astronomer Royal Catherine Heymans and black hole hunter Martin Hendry join forces for a whistle stop tour through the life and legacy of Scotland's Einstein, James Clerk Maxwell. Details are here


10 March 2022 - Wigtown Book Festival - Scotland's Einstein

Lecture by Catherine Heymans, Scotland's Astronomer Royal and Martin Hendry, LIGO astronomer about Scotland's Einstein, James Clerk Maxwell. The lecture was given live from Maxwell's birthplace, 14 India Street, Edinburgh.
Recording on YouTube

Newspaper coverage included the Glasgow Herald and The National, and inspired a BBC Radio Scotland "Thought for the Day" (at 1:23:20 into the main morning news programme recording).


24 February 2022 - New Virtual Walking Tour of Maxwell's Edinburgh Launched

We have a new interactive version of the virtual "walking" tour using Google Earth for the full 3D experience.
Details are here




14 India Street entrance hall.

He was born in this house at 14 India Street, Edinburgh in 1831 and the Foundation bought it in 1993.

This elegant Georgian house, after period restoration, displays a growing collection of scientific and personal heritage material associated with James Clerk Maxwell, his associates and family circle. ...MORE

Birthplace Tours In Person On Line On Paper (PDF)

In person tours of the house can now restart, subject to some public health limitations.
Interactive virtual tours are always available on line.
The PDF brochure describes the contents of the house.


Marischal College Aberdeen - panoramio
Marischal College Aberdeen

This new virtual tour of Maxwell related locations across the UK includes Glenlair, Aberdeen, London, and Cambridge.

Start the tour

It uses Google Earth. Click the Present button when it loads.


Maxwell statue on George Street Edinburgh

The Edinburgh tour covers a distance of approximately 3 miles (5km) in and around Edinburgh's town centre. It takes in the homes of James Clerk Maxwell and some of his closest friends and relatives, his school, university and the churches he attended, and other points of interest along the way.

Edinburgh Tours Walking On Line On Paper (PDF)

The on-line tour uses Google Earth. Click the Present button when it loads.


We (co-)fund the following:


You can subscribe to one or both of the following e-mail list memberships:

Register for e-mails here. (lauches our membermojo registration site)

We will not use this mailing list to contact you about anything else. We use the membermojo service to run our mailing list membership. It is GDPR compliant to protect your data. You can opt out at any stage.

Or follow us on Twitter.


Donate on-line (please follow the link)

or by post to:

The Treasurer, James Clerk Maxwell Foundation, 14 India Street, Edinburgh, EH3 6EZ

For all enquiries, or to request covenant and Gift Aid forms, please write to us at this address, or contact us via email at: jcmf_contact_email

The JCM Foundation is a charity formed in Scotland in 1977. (Registered Charity SC015003)
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