Museums need the support of the mineral-collecting community. Most museums are financed by a college, university or government, but seldom get much for specimen acquisition. Private museums seem to be financially stable. A few are endowed, but in almost all cases, a museum needs public support. Some have gift shops in hopes those profits can help the museum budget.
Think back to when you first got an interest in minerals. Like me, you may have seen your first mineral collection in a museum or university setting. In 1935, I went on a school field trip to the Yale Pea-body Museum. That's what got me started in the hobby over 80 years ago. How many current and past mineral collectors started the hobby after a museum visit?
HOW TO SUPPORT MUSEUMS
You can help museums with donations, including your collection when you can no longer care for it. But don't expect a museum is going to preserve your minerals or even display them. Museums simply cannot accept donations on such terms. They have to have a free hand to keep, trade or sell donated minerals. If you want control, one sensible method is to invite a museum curator to see your collection. They can select what they need, then you can sell the rest and give the museum the money. This way you control your minerals to the bitter end.
PERSONAL DONATIONS
Denne historien er fra October 2023-utgaven av Rock&Gem Magazine.
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Denne historien er fra October 2023-utgaven av Rock&Gem Magazine.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Cleaning & Cracking Géodes, Great and Small
Geodes. From their Latin and Greek origins meaning ‘earth-like,’ the cracking and cleaning of these popular stone eggs is no yolk: those unassuming exteriors can belie wonderful clusters of crystals or banded layers of agate within!
GOLD: PAST, PRESENT & FUTURE
Has Gold Production Finally Peaked?
The Minerals That Made America
Iron, Copper, Lead & Zinc Transformed the United States Into a Major Industrial Power
THE ORDOVICIAN OCEAN OF ST. LEON, INDIANA
Imagine walking through an area filled with millions of fossils just lying there ready for you to pick up and put in your bucket.
A Ring around the World?
\"Ring around the Rosie, a pocket full of posies. Ashes! Ashes! We all fall down!\" So goes the children's nursery rhyme.
IKONS OF THE MINERAL WORLD
Enjoy the following pages from Ikons of the Mineral World Nature's Finest Art by Wayne A. Thompson, Walter E. Donovan, Robert M. Lavinsky, Wendell E. Wilson and Sandor P. Fuss.
Fascinating Fluorite A Beginner & Collector's Favorite
Should you be found, be it working on your collection or walking around a mineral show, humming the song \"My Favorite Things\" with the mineral name 'Fluorite' worked into the lyrics, many of us collectors would totally understand, and probably join in. If that's not the case, let's see if we can make that happen.
ROMANCING THE RUBY
Few words are as packed with meaning as “ruby.” While the word refers primarily to the legendary red gemstone, it is also the preferred adjective for red colors of extraordinary intensity and purity. Its association with wealth and royalty conjures romantic images of kingdoms that once flourished in such historical ruby sources as Ceylon, Siam, Burma and India.
ROYAL SAHARA JASPER
Royal Sahara Jasper was originally discovered in the early 2000s in Northern Africa in the Sahara Desert. During an excursion to Africa, George and Janet Sechler found a piece of rock on the ground that showed similarities to picture jaspers like Biggs or Deschutes.
CLOUDY DAZE
Cloudy Daze is the Novice Design that was selected for the United States Faceting Guild 2025 gemstone faceting competition.
