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10wRe: A very good mineralogy book is requestedReply from Alan Pribula in Education.Here's a second to Keith's recommendation. Later printings/editions of the Sinkankas book were simply titled Mineralogy. It's been out of print for quite a while, so the information about mineral localities isn't very up-to-date, but that's the book I always go to when I want basic (and ...
Sep 2023Re: Sealing minerals in ampoulesReply from Alan Pribula in General.Unless you have glass-working equipment and experience, it might be a good idea to contact a nearby university to see if there's anyone there who does that sort of work. Large universities often have a dedicated glass shop for making/repairing physics/chemistry glassware. Smaller ...
Sep 2023Re: Mineral Cup 2023: Day 1 - Kaolinite vs. MoissaniteReply from Alan Pribula in General.I just successfully voted using the link in the original message (only 3 "campaigns").
May 2023⚠13 imagesRe: Thematic (sub-)collectionsReply from Alan Pribula in General.It's interesting to read what specialties other folks have. I agree with the sentiment that you can't argue with anyone's interests or specialties--individual preferences are just that: individual. While I may not share others' specific interests, I can appreciate why certain ...
May 2023Re: Is this how rough Spinel looks from Burma, Myanmar?Reply from Alan Pribula in Identity Help.I interpreted your question to be "Is it tumbled?" If instead you meant "Is it spinel," then I agree completely with Steve.
May 2023Re: Is this how rough Spinel looks from Burma, Myanmar?Reply from Alan Pribula in Identity Help.Since most of the gemstones (including spinels) from Burma are found in gem gravels in river beds, they very commonly show rounded edges from natural tumbling in the streams. Not to say that these couldn't have been tumbled after they were first found, but there's nothing unusual or ...
Jan 2023Re: Seeking Book RecommendationsReply from Alan Pribula in General.My first recommendation is always John Sinkankas's Mineralogy (also published with the title Mineralogy for Amateurs). It's a very readable book, with clear explanations of the basics such as chemical bonding, crystal structure, physical properties, etc. I'm sure it's long out of print ...
Dec 2022Re: Artificially grown Chalcanthite or something else? Pls helpReply from Alan Pribula in Fakes & Frauds.A photo of the bottom of the specimen to show the matrix would also be helpful.
Nov 2022Re: Two minerals never before been seen on Earth found inside 17-ton meteoriteReply from Alan Pribula in Education.I don't know what Pavel is specifically referring to, but a summary article about the discovery that I saw on Bing was titled "Joy as Scientists find New Elements in Meteorite." While the author used the correct term "minerals" in the body of the article, they apparently don't know the ...
Nov 2022Re: Bought in a lot. Origin unknownReply from Alan Pribula in Identity Help.Looks like calcanthite crystals laboratory grown on a rock substrate. If you can break off a small piece from an inconspicuous place, put it in water. If it's calcanthite, it will dissolve readily to give a sky-blue solution.
Aug 2022Re: Mineral specimen panic in Sydney high schoolReply from Alan Pribula in General.And, in addition to that, every cancer cell that's ever been analyzed was just loaded with dihydrogen monoxide!
Jun 2022Re: manganian and manganoan - not in the glossaryReply from Alan Pribula in Improving Mindat.org.I don't want to beat a dead horse here, but if the adjectives for manganese- and iron-bearing are in the glossary, then for completeness, comparable adjectives for other elements probably should be there as well. At a minimum, I know that I have seen cobaltoan, cobaltian, mercurian, vanadian, ...
Jun 2022Re: manganian and manganoan - not in the glossaryReply from Alan Pribula in Improving Mindat.org.If you learned your chemistry long enough ago (my high school course was in 1964-65), you learned that when a metal formed more than one cation, the name of the one with the lower charge ended in -ous and the one with the higher charge ended in -ic. So, ferrous/ferric, cuprous/cupric, ...
Jan 2022Re: Is a collection of every mineral species possible?Reply from Alan Pribula in General.The late Bob Rothenberg would occasionally say of a specimen of a rare mineral that "This mineral is so rare that it's not even on this specimen." That speaks to the problem that others have mentioned above.
Jan 2022Re: Toxic/Irradiated specimensReply from Alan Pribula in General.I'm kind of amazed that brucite would be listed as toxic by anyone. If you've ever taken milk of magnesia, then you've ingested the medicinal equivalent of brucite. Since pure brucite would be colorless, and many samples are colored, perhaps they were thinking of whatever contaminant ...
Jan 2022Re: Near a very old site it said to be from The Kingdom of Kinda era near Riyadh provinceReply from Alan Pribula in Identity Help.Since the iridescent play of color is due to a thin surface layer formed by weathering of the glass, you need to be careful not to scrape that thin layer off. Whatever method you choose to clean it, be as gentle as possible and don't scrub it with anything abrasive. A long soak in ...
Nov 2021Re: No clue (it’s from a collection with no locality)Reply from Alan Pribula in Identity Help.The combination of apophyllite on prehnite very common in the Northern Virginia trap rock quarries (Manassas, Goose Creek, Virginia Trap, Centreville, etc.). Could also be from one of those.
Sep 2021Re: Mineralogical Diversity.Reply from Alan Pribula in General.And is sheer number of different species the best measure of "mineralogical diversity?" If a locality has 200 different species, but they're almost all sulfides, is that "diverse?" I would consider a locality with a wider variety of species across the different classes (sulfides, ...
Jul 2021Re: Louisville, Maryland Mine tailings.Reply from Alan Pribula in Field Collecting.On the Mineral Hill Mine page that Kevin listed, the photographer for the three pictures at the top of the page has collected there many times. If you PM him, he'll probably give you plenty of information about the site.
Jun 2021Re: Green-blue crystalReply from Alan Pribula in Identity Help.A good bet (based both on the properties and the location) would be prehnite. And contacting/joining one or more of the MD/DC/NoVA mineral clubs (as has been suggested in your previous posts) would be a good idea. Lots of knowledge to be accessed there!
May 2021Re: Real or fake agateReply from Alan Pribula in Fakes & Frauds.Might it be "fordite?"
Apr 2021Re: green quartz clustersReply from Alan Pribula in Identity Help.Lab grown, most likely in China. Many (if not all) of these have a "groove" on the bottom where they sat on some sort of wire support while they were being manufactured. A thread earlier this year discussed these.mindat.org/mesg-551846.html
Apr 2021Re: Remove calcite from vanadiniteReply from Alan Pribula in Techniques for Collectors.I can't comment on the effectiveness of acetic vs. phosphoric (but phosphoric is a slightly stronger acid, assuming I remember the dissociation constants correctly), but phosphates are generally insoluble in water and acetates are soluble. That would mean that it's less likely that acetic ...
Apr 2021Re: ELI5- Crystal and Mineral twinningReply from Alan Pribula in General. My go-to source for basic information about almost anything mineralogical is Mineralogy by John Sinkankas. It was first published in 1964, so its locality information is pretty dated, but it's a great place to go for a clear, well-written discussion of the basics. It has a 9-page ...
Apr 2021Re: The very first mineral collector - was a calcite specialist! [NOT april fools!]Reply from Alan Pribula in General.What would have been really interesting would be if they had found the collectors' perky boxes and display cabinets!
Mar 2021Re: Removing Tape and Ink residue from concretionsReply from Alan Pribula in Techniques for Collectors.If the acetone doesn't work (or only works partially), you might also try a hydrocarbon solvent (hexane, "petroleum spirits," or even gasoline). Wet a cloth or tissue with solvent and rub the piece, but don't rinse with water since these aren't water-soluble like acetone is. The pieces ...
Mar 2021Re: Can not read old label, identity helpReply from Alan Pribula in Identity Help.Good piece, even if it isn't particularly striking to look at. Campolungo is apparently the "real" type locality for tremolite, not the Tremola Valley that it's named for. I'm sure there aren't many "type locality" specimens of tremolite available to obtain for a collection today.
Mar 2021Re: maryland field collectingReply from Alan Pribula in Field Collecting.Kevin:Some clubs near your location:Baltimore Mineral Society: baltimoremineralsociety.orgChesapeake Gem and Mineral Society: chesapeakegemandmineral.orgGem Cutters Guild of Baltimore: gemcutersguild.orgPatuxent Lapidary Guild: patuxentlapidary.orgMaryland Geological ...
Jan 2021Re: FluorapatiteReply from Alan Pribula in Minerals.Pure fluorine in its elemental form wasn't isolated until 1886, but it was known in its compounds long before that.
Nov 2020Re: Golden needles in calciteReply from Alan Pribula in Identity Help.I don't know of any definitive testing that's been done, but I've always been told that the needles are marcasite, not pyrite.
Nov 2020Re: Bill Henderson micro-mineral collectionReply from Alan Pribula in General.Mineral dealer Keith Williams has been selling mounts prepared by Bill for the past few years. I don't know if he purchased Bill's actual collection or just the duplicates.
Sep 2020Re: Pronunciation of thaumasiteReply from Alan Pribula in General.The story is told about the newbie on his first collecting trip. He showed a specimen he had found to one of the more experienced club members and asked what mineral was present. The response was given as "ger-tite." He showed it to another collector and was told that it was ...
Aug 2020Re: Please tell me if this is fake or notReply from Alan Pribula in Fakes & Frauds.It's very likely real azurite and malachite. What's not real is the locality information. First off, the Sepon Mine is in Laos, not China. Secondly, many Chinese azurite/malachite specimens are being sold as from the Sepon Mine in Laos by unscrupulous dealers trying to make their ...
Jul 2020Re: Where to start with an inherited collectionReply from Alan Pribula in General.I read Alfredo's response, then, in the time it took me to log in so that I could respond, Don posted his. I would agree with everything they said, but my strongest advice would be to second Don's #6. Find a local mineral/gem/lapidary club and attend some meetings. You'll find any ...
Jul 2020Re: Is this rhodochrosite?Reply from Alan Pribula in Identity Help.If it's zincite, it will feel heavy for its size. Zincite has a surprisingly high density. One of the dealers in Tucson in 2019 (I didn't get there this year) had a huge quantity of the Polish smelter zincites, and I was amazed at how heavy the larger pieces were.
Jul 2020Re: Micromounts - Aris unknown...Reply from Alan Pribula in Techniques for Collectors.Any time I see "MSH" in the context of a mineral specimen, I think "Mont Sainte-Hilaire" in Quebec. Are you sure it's from Aris?
Jul 2020Re: Test for chlorargyrite?Reply from Alan Pribula in General.In one sense, this has always been chemdat. After all, minerals are just pretty chemicals, aren't they?(No, just because I taught Chemistry for almost 40 years, that doesn't make me prejudiced!)
Jul 2020Re: "Dash element" pronunciation...Reply from Alan Pribula in General.Ed's comment brings to mind the story about the relative newbie on his first field trip to a quarry with his local club. He brought one specimen to one of the more experienced collectors and asked what it might be. The older collector said "It looks like goethite (pronounced "go-thite") ...
Jul 2020Re: Spessartine or Almandine?Reply from Alan Pribula in Identity Help.I'd give another vote for this being almandine from the garnet ledge in Wrangell. BUT--The garnets from Mitkof Island (not too far away from Wrangell) are almost dead ringers for the Wrangell garnets, so you can't be 100% sure. Statistically, there are many, many more specimens from ...
Feb 2020Re: Amazing Azurite in the MAD case at the 2020 TGMS ShowReply from Alan Pribula in General.The labeling is also somewhat schizophrenic. It says "Touissit" on the plastic stand, but "Kerrouchene" on the paper label. I'm guessing that Kerrouchene is the correct locality. If so, and if the stand is 2" across, these are pretty big crystals from there. Even with the ...
Feb 2020Re: Turquoise on beach rocks?Reply from Alan Pribula in Identity Help.Stan, you're too late! At one of the shows in Tucson in 2019, one dealer had buckets and buckets of fluorescent pebbles and rocks that he had collected on beaches around the UP. He had named them and was selling them as "yooperites."
Feb 2020Re: The Stone Roses of Karlovy VaryReply from Alan Pribula to an article.In the old days, folks would place all sorts of items into the thermal springs in Yellowstone National Park to get them coated with calcium carbonate so they could be sold as souvenirs. There are a lot of them on display in the visitor centers there. That practice is now officially ...
Dec 2019⚠18 imagesRe: IRON BOTH NEAR AND EXTREMELY FARReply from Alan Pribula in Education.One of the best ways to grow crystals of ferrocene is by sublimation and deposition. If you spread the ferrocene powder in a thin layer in a petri dish, cover it with the top, and then place it on a hotplate set at a high enough setting, the ferrocene sublimes and re-condenses on the cover in ...
Dec 2019Re: Epidote?Reply from Alan Pribula in Identity Help.I've seen more than a dozen epidote specimens from Imilchil, and this is a dead ringer for the ones I've seen. I realize that doesn't prove anything, but to me it points strongly in that direction.
Dec 2019Re: Quartz or opal?Reply from Alan Pribula in Identity Help.Checking the hardness could also help. Opal is softer than quartz. If a known piece of quartz scratches your sample, it could be opal (but could also be a whole list of other minerals); if no scratch, then it's not opal and might be quartz (but could also be some mineral harder than ...
Nov 2019Re: Oxidized Pyrite?Reply from Alan Pribula in Identity Help.Very common. The red-brown coating is mixed iron oxides/hydroxides formed by the reaction of the pyrite with atmospheric oxygen and water. The coating is usually referred to as limonite, and it normally consists primarily of the mineral goethite, with other iron species also often mixed ...
Nov 2019Re: Triboluminescent POTDReply from Alan Pribula in Photos.Table sugar (sucrose) is triboluminesent. Just crush a sugar cube with a pair of pliers and you'll see blue sparks.
Oct 2019⚠15 imagesRe: Strangest mislabellings you've seenReply from Alan Pribula in General.Over the years, I've seen too many mislabelings and mis-spellings to remember them all. One I do remember was the "kalsedny" I saw in a rock shop in Virginia.At the small museum where I volunteer as mineral curator, we received a donation a couple of years ago from the daughter of a former ...
Oct 2019Re: Extremely Rare Red Fluorite Unearthed in ChinaReply from Alan Pribula in General.A bunch of these (mostly pink, but some as dark red as the one pictured above) have been sold recently on eBay, and many more are currently listed. Pretty much all of them have had black (or at least dark) fibrous inclusions. (The one above may have them, but it's not very obvious if it ...
Sep 2019Re: Need some chemistry advice!Reply from Alan Pribula in Identity Help.Don:On the macroscopic scale (which it sounds like your crystal group isn't), silver chloride (i.e., chlorargyrite) will dissolve in ammonia of a moderate concentration (usually a 6 molar solution is used), but silver bromide (i.e., bromargyrite) will only dissolve in concentrated (i.e., saturated) ...
