FMF - Friends of Minerals Forum, discussion and message board

[Tobi]

This one was a U.S. classic which i was searching for very long: Amazonite from Pikes Peak in Colorado, USA. Very rare to get in Germany, but now i finally got such a specimen :-) The overall size is 95 x 60 x 52 mm, the largest crystal is about 30 x 35 x 20 mm.

[Tobi]

Another German Fluorite from a classic locality: This one's from the Hermine Mine in Wölsendorf, Bavaria. From an older collection, overall size 115 x 70 x 45 mm, longest crystal edge 20 mm.

[Tobi]

This is a green Fluorite from El Hamam, Morocco. What makes this specimen special (i'm sorry that the picture doesn't really show it) is the growth of purple Fluorite crystals inside the green ones. I don't know how to call this form of growth. Phantoms? Two generations? But it looks interesting ... well, nearly EVERY Fluorite in the world looks interesting ;-)

Overall size 85 x 60 x 35 mm, longest edge 23 mm.

[Tobi]

I want to post two of my favourite Calcite specimens. First, here's one from the quarry near Landelies, Belgium. It has nearly transparent, yellow crystals up to 25 mm on white matrix, overall size 140 x 110 x 70 mm. Until i found this one on a mineral show some years ago, i had never heard of the beautiful Calcites from Landelies ... they are really nice :-)

[Tobi]

Nearly the same story is connected with this German Calcite: It's from a quarry near Rammelsbach, Palatinate. I didn't even know that this place existed until i saw this specimen on a mineral show. It has salmon-coloured crystals up to a lenght of 35 mm, overall size 145 x 120 x 85 mm.

[Tobi]

This is a Halite specimen from a potash mine in Neuhof (eastern Hesse, exactly in the middle of Germany). The overall size is 200 x 80 x 60 mm, longest crystal edge is 13 mm.

[Tobi]

An impressive cluster of Pyrite from the Huanzala Mine in Peru. Overall size 160 x 105 x 80 mm, longest crystal edge 50 mm.
I you want strong muscles, take this one for weightlifting ;-)

[Tobi]

This is currently the centerpiece of my display collection and this specimen is connected with a question to those of you how have good knowledge of Madagascar minerals. I only know that it is from the Antananarivo province, but i would like to know the exact locality. I even talked to some fellow collectors here in Germany, but no one was able to tell me the exact locality, where these Milky Quartz specimens are mined in Madagascar.

Has anyone here an idea of where it's exactly from in Antananarivo province in Madagascar?

Overall size 170 x 155 x 100 mm, longest crystals are about 80 mm long.

[Carles Millan]

Hi Tobias!

I know almost nothing about Madagascar minerals. And I own a couple of zircons from this island that for many years I didn't know where they were from, I had no clue about their exact locality.

I was lucky enough, however, to have the chance to ask a great expert about Madagascar minerals, Mr. Laurent Thomas, thanks to the help of Gail Spann and Jordi Fabre, who made a valuable suggestion ( https://www.mineral-forum.com/message-board/viewtopic.php?t=466 ). If you could reach him (although I don't know how) it's very likely that you got an answer to your question.

Good luck!

[parfaitelumiere]

Hi Tobias,your Baryte specimen makes me really think of similar specimens found at Cabrières in Herault in France,I have one similar specimen,with pseudo of limonite after calchopyrite.

[Tobi]

I don't know how the Barytes from Cabrières look like - why don't you show it in your collection thread?

@Carles: Thank you!

[parfaitelumiere]

In fact I have this specimen,but it's not in my collection,because of size,too big...
But when I looked ot yours from Germany,it has made me think of Cabrières!
I will take a shot to show it to you!

[Tobi]

The problem with the size, i know: I had another Baryte from Dreislar, with a size of 300 x 300 x 200 mm. And you know that Baryte is heavy ... It was just too big and to heavy for the display, so i sold it and kept the smaller one, which has much better quality than the giant specimen.

The next specimen from my collection is not really too big for a display ;-) A Pyrite twin in clay/marl (?) matrix from a quarry named Maibolte near Lemgo/North-Rhine-Westphalia. This kind of twin crystal is called Eisernes Kreuz (iron cross) in German. I don't know if this is analogue in other languages ...? The tiny Pyrite twin has a size of 5 mm, overall size of the specimen is 40 x 30 x 12 mm.

This Pyrites from Westphalia are a little bit similiar to the Spanish ones from Ambasaguas, aren't they? (Though the Spanish ones are often bigger, because these German ones are not often bigger than 6 or 7 mm ...).

[Tobi]

The next specimen is a Magnetite from Cerro Huañaquino, Bolivia. I know that this material became quite common in the past years, but the most samples i see on shows are small and have even smaller crystals. This one has a few broken crystals, but it is covered over and over with other, intact crystals and it looks impressive because of its size: 155 x 120 x 40 mm, longest crystal egde 10 mm.

[Tobi]

A small but aesthetic specimen of Schorl from from Baltistan, Pakistan. The crystal has a lenght of 10 mm, overall size of the specimen is 30 x 30 x 15 mm.

[Tobi]

I think a collection photo thread is not complete without some pictures of the entire displays. Ed showed some wide shots of his displays, Gail did it before. I would like to see how your collections are arranged: How do your showcases look, where are they placed, which light do you use, how full are the displays^^

Here are some impressions from my collection: I have two 100 x 100 cm ash wood hanging displays, each one with four levels. First a wider shot of the two displays:

[Tobi]

This is the left one, filled with Vanadinite, Garnets, Fluorites, Calcites and much more ...

[Tobi]

And the other one, including Indian Zeolites, Tourmalines, some iron ores and Quartz - and some more.

If you wonder about the open books on the bottom level: The front glass has a metal frame which disturbs the sight on this level. The minerals that is first placed there were not perfectly in sight, so i decided to fill this level with some bigger things. They even work as a kind of information table and they add a bit of "museum touch" to the displays ... ;-)

[parfaitelumiere]

Your collection is really well displayed,simply and well organised.
Do you think it coul be a good idea to put a black background or a mirror background?
I think a mirror will be difficult to cut and put on.
I think the black velvet can be easier.
That's just my idea.
For the moment my collection is in several boxes,with a place for each specimen,I will take photos,and add it to my own gallery,I think it's a good idea yo have had!

[Tobi]

Thank you for your compliments :-)

To find the perfect background is really difficult. The problem is that each background "swallows" the minerals which have a similar colour. So there is no perfect solution :-/

I tried a white background when this displays were new. Result: White or colourless minerals (e.g. quartz, apophyllite, calcite, Baryte) were nearly "invisible".

This wooden background here makes for example yellow and brown minerals look much paler than they really are. The belgian calcite that i posted above has a real great yellow colour and looks nearly like a sicilian sulphur. But when the specimen stands in this display, it looks just pale yellow and quite boring.

And a black background? This could "swallow" minerals like magnetite, haematite oder dark fluorite. But if you choose a dark grey velvet, it could work. And a mirror ... i've never tried this, sorry. But i know it from other collections and - to be honest - i don't like it very much.