Howieite and Deerite from Laytonville Quarry

Hello,

I have literally boxes of Howieite and Deerite from the type locality, the Laytonville Quarry in Mendocino County, CA.
They're not the most showy of mineral species, so there probably isn't a huge market value for such things, but can anyone give me a general idea of what they might be worth?

I've attached pictures of a fairly representative specimen, including both Howieite and Deerite.

Thanks,
Krissa

The wholesale value for thumbnail specimens like this is a few dollars apiece. They aren't the prettiest specimens, and the market is somewhat limited. They may have more trade value than sale value.

Interesting material, but not worth much and you'll find them almost impossible to sell at a show I'd suspect. A big species dealer like Excalibur might take the lot, if he doesn't already have a hundred pounds of the stuff.

T

Howieite and deerite from the TL are only rarely offered in Europe.

Krissna,
I suspect if you offered all of your boxes to a dealer for $100 you might or might not find a buyer for it. Any dealer buying it would know that he would have the material around for years and would only be able to sell a piece of it now and then. Yes, they might eventually make ten times their money on the stuff, but at the cost of storing it for a generation or two and even then they would still probably have a bunch of it laying around. As a dealer I think I would choose to spend my money on more rapidly selling material than some massive somewhat rare mineral. I think you might donate it to a school or non profit institution and claim a tax write off. It think you would come out better financially.

Rock Currier
Crystals not pistols.

Dear Krissna,
When I was a Geology student way back in the 60's, we used a major text-book by Deer, Howie and Zussman.
I would love to buy one of your specimens to keep in their honorable memory in my collection, Do you have a nice small piece that you could sell me? I am Alan Melbourne, 20 Williams Road Bonville 2450 NSW, Australia. How much would you ask to mail me a piece please? (Are you chasing any Australian minerals?)
Regards, Alan

Krissna,

I've found the Laytonville material to be quite esoteric for most collectors, at least those here in the Midwest where I've traded or sold a few specimens. To me, the Riebeckite is the most appealing visually because of the blue color. The market is small, but if you are patient, you should be able to sell or trade to individuals. Not sure about dealers.

Every once in a while these minerals can be found on Ebay. This is probably the most widely viewed venue you could use for selling. The key here, I think, is patience and not asking for a high price.

The Laytonville Quarry is one of my favorite collecting spots. Aside from the complex geology, the unique mineralogy keeps me coming back again and again. Besides, where else can you go to collect blue rocks? Can't wait to go back this winter.

Keith

Sorry I misspelled your name Krissa! Maybe I just copied a previous error, but my humble apologies! Kind regards,
Alan Melbourne
(using my wife's email address since I am not at present logged in to Mindat, and doing so srom my own email of alanmelbourne@yahoo.com.au seems to cause system problems about some sort of attack attempt???)