FMF - Friends of Minerals Forum, discussion and message board

[John S. White]

With urging from Jordi and Antonio, I am posting here a letter that I wrote a long time ago. It came about because I was requested by the Canadian Museum of Nature to assess the value of the Pinch collection prior to their agreeing to purchase it. Subsequently, there were rumors that they were not sure that the collection was as valuable as was claimed. This letter was written to justify the value of that remarkable collection:

Letter to the director of the National Museum of Natural Sciences, Ottawa

It has come to my attention that there now exists some question as to whether or not the William Pinch mineral collection is actually worth 3.5 million dollars. Who can be absolutely certain what its value truly is? This collection is virtually impossible to evaluate. How does one calculate the value of a near life-long dedication to the pursuit of the best specimens of all of the minerals in the “kingdom,” conducted by someone who is perhaps the best collector the world has ever produced? I really don’t know. I do know, however, that if the Houston Museum of Natural History is prepared to raise 4 million to pay for it (as is advertised), then the Pinch collection is worth even more! The great strength of the Pinch collection is that it not only has extraordinary display quality specimens, but it is the best assemblage of fine rare specimens of great scientific value ever put together. One can always go out and find lots of beautiful crystal groups to grace an exhibit, but what Pinch has done can never be imitated. This is why it is so essential that the collection remain intact and that it end up in a major national Natural History Museum (and there really aren’t many of us left).

So, frankly, I think the Pinch collection is quite fairly priced. Not only could it not be reassembled for 3.5 million dollars, it couldn’t be reassembled for any amount of money. Who’s to say what the skills of a collector of Pinch’s stature are worth? That effort, alone, might be worth millions. Nevertheless, I feel confident that a competent appraiser could easily justify the price on a specimen-by-specimen basis. The problem is, of course, where does one find a competent appraiser? Every candidate I can think of is personally acquainted with bill (a friend or an enemy; people who are as driven as is bill usually generate lots of both) and, thus, could not be considered impartial. The task of appraising a collection of this magnitude is an awesome prospect. If we were dealing with items for which there are abundant sales records, that would be one thing. The Pinch collection contains hundreds (perhaps thousands) of specimens that are essentially the best that exist, or are equal to the best that exist. There is no simple equation permitting the extrapolation from the value of an average specimen to that of the best one. It would take months to appraise this collection, assuming you could find someone competent to do the job.

I don’t know if I have been successful in making my point, which is that the price being asked for the Pinch collection is perfectly reasonable. I hope that I have. I would be more that pleased to discuss the matter with you or any of your representatives at any time, of course. I am full of envy, as I would be thrilled to see the pinch collection come here.

John S. White
Smithsonian institution

March 29, 1989

[Debbie Woolf]

Fantastic information, thank you Gentlemen.

I am curious to know what the value of the collection is 20 years on ...