Book Review: Minerals of the Meadowfoot Smelter by Steve A. Rust
Last Updated: 16th Mar 2022By Jolyon Ralph
This is a review of the new book 'Minerals of the Meadowfoot Smelter' written and published by Steve Rust, who is surely well-known to all UK mineral collectors and many from beyond.
I need to start by saying this is more of a preview than a review as I don't have a physical copy of the book in my hands - only an electronic review copy - but the review copy I have is the same as has gone to the printer, so the content will be identical. I have one of Steve's other self-published books here (Minerals of the Frongoch Mine) and it's of a high quality on good semigloss paper, hardback bound, with photo reproduction of a high professional standard, so I expect this book will be at least as good when printed.
The Meadowfoot Smelter operated between 1843 and 1928 (or possibly 1934 depending on reference) in Wanlockhead, Scotland smelting the lead ore from the local mines. The dumps from the smelters have been a rich picking-ground for micro-mineral collectors for a very long time. This is, as far as I am aware, the first major publication donated to the micromineralogy of these slags, and Steve has done a phenomenal job in recording and reporting on this.
The title of the book - "Minerals of the Meadowfoot Smelter" - might of course trigger some people who do not regard slag phases as true "minerals". Indeed, the IMA will not regard crystalline phases from slags as eligible to be classed as a new mineral species (although some previously-approved have been grandfathered in and remain valid). Many collectors refuse to collect "slag minerals" despite their often exquisite crystallographic forms.
My view, for what it's worth, is that these crystals formed due to natural processes and I personally have no problems considering them as minerals. They wouldn't have formed unless the roasted ore had been left by people for nature to alter, but they weren't directly created by anyone - they were created naturally.
So, if you're reading this far then I'll assume you ARE interested in slag mineralogy, and therefore I can assure you that you're going to love this book. At 605 pages (including covers) it is a phenomenal piece of work. The book consists of three sections along with acknowledgements and references.
The first section is the Introduction and Location, giving a geographical perspective for where the smelter stood and its relation to the nearby mines along with historical and contemporary maps and photographs.
The second section covers the history of the smelting operations in the region. Lead radioisotope studies of nearby peat bogs suggest that the first mining/smelting occurred between 3600 and 3200 years ago with sporadic peaks of activity between then and the first commercial lease mining of 1675. The first smelter of the modern age was built in 1682. Detailed records of the activity of these smelters and a technical description of the smelting process add to the value of this section, along with multiple well-explained photos of the remains that can be seen today at the site. The second section is completed by eight pages dedicated to the history of specimen collecting at the site. A specimen collected by the late Pam Pearce (formerly of the Sussex Mineral and Lapidary Society) from the site in 1981 became the first UK-recorded occurrence of Elyite.
And then we come to the bulk of the book, section 3 - Mineral Descriptions and Pictures.
First, the pictures. There are over 1,000 pictures with many minerals having multiple photos (there are 75 photos of Leadhillite and 84 photos of Linarite, for example) of 53 minerals ranging from Acanthite to Zincite. There are also 23 photos of phases that have yet to be identified - although it should be pointed out that Steve has over the last few years gone to great effort and personal expense to try to identify as many of the previously-unknowns from this locality as possible. The results of this hard work are evident throughout the book.
Anyone who has seen Steve Rust's photos on mindat.org (and his 40 'Photo of the Day's) will have no doubt about the quality of these photomicrographs and, of course, they are excellent. These are generally restricted to only two photos per page, allowing higher quality photos to show the fine detail in many of these specimens.
One only has to take a single species, such as Anglesite, and browse over the 47 pages of photos for this one species alone, to understand the tour-de-force this book is - documenting every different form and habit seen in the mineral from this locality.
Finally, four pages of acknowledgements and references conclude this book.
If you collect or appreciate slag minerals then this book is an absolute must. Even if you don't, there is no doubting this is an incredible work which deserves a prominent place in your bookshelf.
To order this book (and there is a very limited number of copies) please contact Steve directly at steverust27@gmail.com - The price is £65 (around $85 at today's rate) plus postage and packing.
I need to start by saying this is more of a preview than a review as I don't have a physical copy of the book in my hands - only an electronic review copy - but the review copy I have is the same as has gone to the printer, so the content will be identical. I have one of Steve's other self-published books here (Minerals of the Frongoch Mine) and it's of a high quality on good semigloss paper, hardback bound, with photo reproduction of a high professional standard, so I expect this book will be at least as good when printed.
The Meadowfoot Smelter operated between 1843 and 1928 (or possibly 1934 depending on reference) in Wanlockhead, Scotland smelting the lead ore from the local mines. The dumps from the smelters have been a rich picking-ground for micro-mineral collectors for a very long time. This is, as far as I am aware, the first major publication donated to the micromineralogy of these slags, and Steve has done a phenomenal job in recording and reporting on this.
The title of the book - "Minerals of the Meadowfoot Smelter" - might of course trigger some people who do not regard slag phases as true "minerals". Indeed, the IMA will not regard crystalline phases from slags as eligible to be classed as a new mineral species (although some previously-approved have been grandfathered in and remain valid). Many collectors refuse to collect "slag minerals" despite their often exquisite crystallographic forms.
My view, for what it's worth, is that these crystals formed due to natural processes and I personally have no problems considering them as minerals. They wouldn't have formed unless the roasted ore had been left by people for nature to alter, but they weren't directly created by anyone - they were created naturally.
So, if you're reading this far then I'll assume you ARE interested in slag mineralogy, and therefore I can assure you that you're going to love this book. At 605 pages (including covers) it is a phenomenal piece of work. The book consists of three sections along with acknowledgements and references.
The first section is the Introduction and Location, giving a geographical perspective for where the smelter stood and its relation to the nearby mines along with historical and contemporary maps and photographs.
The second section covers the history of the smelting operations in the region. Lead radioisotope studies of nearby peat bogs suggest that the first mining/smelting occurred between 3600 and 3200 years ago with sporadic peaks of activity between then and the first commercial lease mining of 1675. The first smelter of the modern age was built in 1682. Detailed records of the activity of these smelters and a technical description of the smelting process add to the value of this section, along with multiple well-explained photos of the remains that can be seen today at the site. The second section is completed by eight pages dedicated to the history of specimen collecting at the site. A specimen collected by the late Pam Pearce (formerly of the Sussex Mineral and Lapidary Society) from the site in 1981 became the first UK-recorded occurrence of Elyite.
And then we come to the bulk of the book, section 3 - Mineral Descriptions and Pictures.
First, the pictures. There are over 1,000 pictures with many minerals having multiple photos (there are 75 photos of Leadhillite and 84 photos of Linarite, for example) of 53 minerals ranging from Acanthite to Zincite. There are also 23 photos of phases that have yet to be identified - although it should be pointed out that Steve has over the last few years gone to great effort and personal expense to try to identify as many of the previously-unknowns from this locality as possible. The results of this hard work are evident throughout the book.
Anyone who has seen Steve Rust's photos on mindat.org (and his 40 'Photo of the Day's) will have no doubt about the quality of these photomicrographs and, of course, they are excellent. These are generally restricted to only two photos per page, allowing higher quality photos to show the fine detail in many of these specimens.
One only has to take a single species, such as Anglesite, and browse over the 47 pages of photos for this one species alone, to understand the tour-de-force this book is - documenting every different form and habit seen in the mineral from this locality.
Finally, four pages of acknowledgements and references conclude this book.
If you collect or appreciate slag minerals then this book is an absolute must. Even if you don't, there is no doubting this is an incredible work which deserves a prominent place in your bookshelf.
To order this book (and there is a very limited number of copies) please contact Steve directly at steverust27@gmail.com - The price is £65 (around $85 at today's rate) plus postage and packing.
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