Beyond Minerals
Rock&Gem Magazine|March 2024
I hope mineral collectors realize the acquisition of mineral specimens is just one facet of our hobby. If you look beyond the specimens in your collection, you discover a vast and fascinating world of people and history.
BOB JONES
Beyond Minerals

This has influenced some of my travels as I sought to know more about the people whose minerals I studied while collecting.

DAPHNE DU MAURIER

A superb example of this is Daphne du Maurier. She is a famous English novelist whose books are classics including Rebecca and Jamaica Inn.

When Daphne was vacationing in Cornwall, she went fishing and saw on shore a huge grey stone mansion in the woods near the town of Par, Cornwall. She was told it was the home of the Rashleigh family who had left it and moved into a smaller house on the estate because they could not afford to live in the big mansion. It was still completely furnished as the family intended to move back in one day. She determined to visit the mansion called Menabilly and the next day she did.

When she got there, she sat on the lawn and wondered what stories such an old place could tell. On a second visit, Daphne broke into the old grey stone mansion and later described what she saw in detail in a newspaper article.

PENNING REBECCA

When she became a novelist she used what she had fantasized about while sitting on the lawn at Menabilly. The result was the classic novel Rebecca. In Rebecca, she called the old grey stone mansion Manderlay. But what is the connection between Du Maurier and mineral collecting?

This story is from the March 2024 edition of Rock&Gem Magazine.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

This story is from the March 2024 edition of Rock&Gem Magazine.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

MORE STORIES FROM ROCK&GEM MAGAZINEView All
Rockhounding Ohio's Lake Erie Islands
Rock&Gem Magazine

Rockhounding Ohio's Lake Erie Islands

A short ferry boat ride three miles from Ohio’s Lake Erie coastline is South Bass Island, better known as Put-in-Bay or the “Key West of the North.”

time-read
4 mins  |
Rockhound Roadtrip 2024
Iowa's Hidden Treasures
Rock&Gem Magazine

Iowa's Hidden Treasures

Exploring Keokuk Geodes: How They're Made & What's Inside

time-read
5 mins  |
Rockhound Roadtrip 2024
Agatized CORAL
Rock&Gem Magazine

Agatized CORAL

Florida's Collectible State Stone

time-read
3 mins  |
Rockhound Roadtrip 2024
Rockhounding Florida's Beaches
Rock&Gem Magazine

Rockhounding Florida's Beaches

Beachcombing serene stretches of Florida can reveal fascinating finds like fossilized shark teeth, sea glass, quartz, agate and even coral fragments.

time-read
6 mins  |
Rockhound Roadtrip 2024
Collecting Staurolite
Rock&Gem Magazine

Collecting Staurolite

Hot Spots In Virginia & Georgia

time-read
3 mins  |
Rockhound Roadtrip 2024
Pecos Valley Diamonds
Rock&Gem Magazine

Pecos Valley Diamonds

New Mexico's Ancient Attraction

time-read
4 mins  |
Rockhound Roadtrip 2024
12 Tips for Rockhounding Tucson's Greatest Shows
Rock&Gem Magazine

12 Tips for Rockhounding Tucson's Greatest Shows

Tucson in February becomes the international hub for buying and selling colored gems, rocks, minerals and fossils.

time-read
4 mins  |
Rockhound Roadtrip 2024
Turquoise in the American Southwest
Rock&Gem Magazine

Turquoise in the American Southwest

A Water & Sky Souvenir

time-read
4 mins  |
Rockhound Roadtrip 2024
Touring Colorado's MINERAL BELT
Rock&Gem Magazine

Touring Colorado's MINERAL BELT

It's a Showcase of Mining History & Minerals

time-read
6 mins  |
Rockhound Roadtrip 2024
Geology &Colorado's Taurish Traiks
Rock&Gem Magazine

Geology &Colorado's Taurish Traiks

Most of Colorado’s tourist trains today were originally constructed in the late 1800s to serve the state’s lucrative mining operations.

time-read
4 mins  |
Rockhound Roadtrip 2024