FMF - Friends of Minerals Forum, discussion and message board

[travelller]

Hi, I'm new to the forums, and I'd like to ask about this box I recovered from a load of old books. Is it really from Antarctica? The photo is from a Russian expedition and is dated 1990-92. The flora has been shellac'd and everything is firmly glued down. The copper emblem on the cover has Antarctica and a penguin in relief. Any thoughts?

[travelller]

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[travelller]

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[travelller]

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[Pete Modreski]

Very interesting! One's first reaction is, "unlikely", and I suspect few or none of us have ever seen any agates & related rocks from Antarctica; but, it still does seem possible. I see that there is an Agate Peak in Antrarctica, the name of which is described thus:
"A peak at the SE end of Intention Nunataks, at the SW margin of Evans Neve. So named by the New Zealand Antarctic Place-Names Committee (NZ-APC) because agate and other semi-precious stones were found here by the Southern Party of New Zealand Geological Survey Antarctic Expedition (NZGSAE), 1966-67."
And, a review of the book, Agates II, by Johan Zenz, mentions, "This update includes unusual and exotic destinations like Antarctica and Greenland." So... perhaps they really are from there!

[travelller]

Thanks for the info. I thought the red rock was alabaster of some sort. When I first saw this, I thought,"Is this some kid's science project?" But the photo and its stamp made me reconsider. Here's a pic of it:

[Riccardo Modanesi]

Hi to everybody!
Everything is possible: we all have to remember Antarctica is a big big continent, almost as big as Africa, and almost nobody knows anything about what is there inside this continent. All what we know is: in geological times, i.e. some 100 million years ago, Antarctica was attached to Africa (and therefore South America), India and Australia. We all know what was and is found in those continents (including the sub-continent India), they are all paradises for minerals!
But we can't avoid considering another aspect: if minerary resources are found there, the environment (something unique in the world) is endangered to be lost forever and the glaciers are endangered as well! Therefore: looking for minerals ok, but respecting nature (as we usually do all over the world) is a must.
Greetings from Italy by Riccardo.

[travelller]

Hello all, thank you for the replies and ideas. They are appreciated. You set me on the right track, I ran a search on Google using "russian antarctic agate" and found this site:

https://www.agateoftheworld.com/Antartica1.html
(link normalized by FMF)

The agates pictured are very similar to the ones in the box, although mine are smaller. The agates were procuredfrom the clearing of a foundation for a Russian Orthodox church placed in Antarctica.
The church was made in Russia, then dismantled and transported. It is made of wood and is a sturdy example of log carpentry. Lincoln log-like. So the contents of the box may very well be from this, the 36th Russian Antarctic Expedition, if the stamp in the photo is correct.

I am a casual seller of books and other small things online, and was considering selling this, but the more I learn about it, the more I like it. And it does tuck neatly into the shelves, like a book. I've always been fascinated by Antarctica, and to own a piece of it is a weird feeling.
Thanks for the help and input.

[John Oostenryk]

Hello,
That is a cool item you acquired. Sounds like you are now confident of authenticity, and I would concur!

Just wanted to confirm that all the rock types in the picture are certainly found in the Antarctic. I am at Augustana College In Illinois. One of our geol Profs is Dr. William Hammer who has been there 8 times, as well as several other students and alumni accompanying him or on expeditions themselves. I have looked over Dr. Hammer's personal cabinet of geo specimen pickups a couple times. I have seen big smoky qtz crystals, agates, drusy qtz, shorl in feldspar and qtz, all types of petrified wood, jaspers, orbicular wht/blck granite(awesome!), basalts, etc. Basically any misc material of Igneous/metamorph/sedimentary material is probable. Triassic and early Jurassic plant fossils are all over certain areas of those ages. Triassic animal fossils are also well known from there too. The Jurassic critters are RARE!
Expedition discoveries were part of what helped the original acceptance of plate tectonics/movement as the fossils/matrix found there matched up with other continents. Cool stuff.

Dr. Hammer is a paleontologist/biologist - with the first retrieval of a Dinosaur from there- google him, our school Geology dept, Fryxell Museum, or cryolophosaurus for more on allll that! Augie's joint expeditions now have confirmed at least 4 more early-mid Jurassic creatures too...
At some point in the future I will try to get pics of his small collection of study/souvenir rocks and minerals(sweet ventifacts too) and post them separately under an Antarctic Rocks and Minerals post title. I will also include some images of the sed matrix the dinos were in(his main focus-tons pf that were brought back!)