Vandall King is from Maine, USA and started mineral collecting in 1959. Van was an active presenter in high school science clubs, Boy Scouts, and 4-H, and won first place at the Maine State Science Fair with a project titled: “Qualitative Analysis as a Geological Tool.” During summers, he was an active mineral collector and hitchhiked to numerous mineral localities in Maine and New Hampshire. In later summers, he was working as an environmental field assistant (Colby College and University of Maine) and graduated with a B.A. from the University of Maine at Orono in Earth Science. He was a high school teacher in Berlin, NH (1973) and continued summers as an environmental assistant at University of Maine). He later attended graduate school at the State University of New York (1974-1978) and received an M.S. in Geochemistry specializing in granite pegmatites of Newry, Maine and he later entered the Ph. D. program also at the State University of New York, researching mica structures and synthesis and is ABD. In 1979 through 1987, he was staff mineralogist for Ward’s Natural Science Establishment, and later became a professional mineralogical consultant, scientific writer, and photographer and continues in those capacities. His consulting specialties include writing, technical photography, mineral appraisals, and museum consulting. He was a columnist and editor of Rocks and Minerals magazine (19xx-19xx), a contributor to Matrix, vice-president of the Friends of Mineralogy national chapter, board member of the Canadian Micromineralogists Association, past president and fellow of the Mineral Section of Rochester Academy of Science, co-chairman of the Rochester Mineralogical Symposium, co-founder, secretary, and vice-president of the Geoliterary Society, co-founder of the Systematic Mineral Dealer’s Association, adjunct professor of Empire State College of SUNY. He was treasurer and board member of the Hudson Institute of Mineralogy (SUNY). He is a managing editor of Mindat.org and has been a board member of Mindat.org (2016-2023). He has written, co-authored, or edited: Guidebook 1 to Mineral Collecting in the Maine Pegmatite Belt (through several revised editions 1974-1983), Guidebook to Geological and Beach Features of the Rachel Carson Salt Pond area (Maine Sea Grant Bulletin #10, King and Nelson, 1975), A Collector’s Guide to Maine Mineral Localities (1st ed. 1988, 2 ed. 1991, 3rd ed.1998), The World's most Incredible Mineral Specimens {a satire}, 1989, Rock H. Currier and Vandall King, Critical Areas Program (EFMLS, 1993), Mineralogy of Maine (2 volumes, 1994, 2000), author of “Hydroxylherderite from Maine, its Controversy and the role of George Kunz” (George Kunz Competition Papers, 1996), The F. John Barlow Mineral Collection (co-author, 1996), Dana’s New Mineralogy (co-author, 1997), He was outside editor and contributor to volumes 4 and 5 of Anthony et al.’s Handbook of Mineralogy (2000, 2003). Tourmaline (ExtraLapis, 2002), Gossan Minerals Lecture by Charles Palache (editor/author, 2 vol. ebook, 2002), Bernard and Hyrsyl’s Handbook of Mineralogy, first edition (contributing editor (editor, 2004), Flowers of the Mineral Kingdon (2005), Maine Feldspar Families and Feuds (2009), Collector’s Guide to Granite Pegmatites (2009), Tourmaline and Friends (The Vug vol. 3 #2, 2010), and Nature’s Garden of Crystals (2011). He is senior author/photographer/editor of The Mineralogy of Franklin and Ogdensburg, New Jersey (2022) and is co-author of Garnets of the World (2024). He has over 250 peer reviewed articles. He is the discoverer of perhamite, mccrillisite, perloffite, mangangordonite, and gainesite. He has presented over 350 mineralogical lectures in 22 states in the USA and has also lectured in United Kingdom, Poland, and Canada.