“Flashes of Colour: Legendary Wines and Gemstones”

Pala Exhibits Eighty Gems and Minerals in Dijon, France

Bill Larson and Pala International have been asked to contribute approximately $1 million worth of gems and mineral specimens to an exhibition with the intriguing title, “Flashes of Colour: Stones and Wines of Legend,” to be held in the Sciences Garden at the Parc de l’Arquebuse, Dijon, France. The show, which runs from June 29 through December 9, 2007, compares the “true colors of wine... with the innumerable nuances offered by fine and invaluable stones.”

Included will be items from the French National Museum of Natural History, private collections, and national museums, as well as wines by the great vintners of Burgundy and beyond. In conjunction with the exhibition will be wine tastings, “experiments on light and color,” workshops on sensory perception, conferences, and more.

While this invitation is a distinct privilege for Pala’s Bill Larson, he also will be inducted into the Confrérie des Chevaliers du Tastevin (a wine tasters’ fraternity of the Burgundy region). This particular event, to be held on September 22, and thus called “Meeting of the Equinox and Precious Stones,” will be held at the Confrérie’s Château du Clos du Vougeot, a former Cistercian abbey. [back to top]

Pala’s Featured Mineral Specimen: Epidote

In this edition of Mineral News we feature a slender and exquisite epidote crystal from the historic Knappenwand Mine in Austria.

This epidote appears jet black and lustrous at first glance, but upon further examination evergreen hues start to shine through the translucent portions. This dark and intense specimen is in pristine form and is said to be the finest of its kind in private hands. Price upon request.

Epidote Crystal, 11.8 x 2.8 x 1.2  cm. This specimen has been sold. (Photo: John McLean)

The Knappenwand Mine near Neukirchen am Grossvenediger, in the state of Salzburg, Austria, is situated in the remote Tauern Alps. This locality was discovered by a mountain guide in 1865. The epidote specimens were described as the “most beautiful epidote crystals ever found” by Professor Victor Ritter Von Zepharovich of Charles University in Prague (Bancroft 1984). This epidote was reportedly mined in the late 1800s and has been carefully handed down through generations of mineral collectors. The original label has even been preserved (see below).

Epidote label. Preserved mineral label circa late 1800s from Berliner Mineralien-Comtoir.

Visit our mineral search for a selection of epidotes from around the world. [back to top]

Natural History Museum Acquires Massive Stibnite Specimen

George E. Harlow, Ph.D., Curator of Minerals and Gems at the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH), sent us the photo below of a remarkable half-ton stibnite specimen that was placed on display April 4. According to the AMNH website, “The unique specimen on display at the Museum was spared from destruction by alert miners in the Wuning (Wuling) antimony mine in Jiangxi Province of southeastern China. Stibnite is most commonly pulverized and heated to extract the antimony and make flame retardants and engine bearings.”

The specimen was donated by Mark Weill, a world-renowned mineral collector, who also received this year’s Paul E. Desautels Award at Tucson, according to The Mineralogical Record. It is the largest such specimen on public display in the world. [back to top]

Lost in a forest of stibnite. Children and adults alike can be inspired by such an awesome sight. (Photo courtesy American Museum of Natural History)

Highlight from Ikons, a book by Wayne A. Thompson

Kunzite Spodumene

A beautiful kunzite specimen, pictured in Wayne Thompson’s book, Ikons: Classics and Contemporary Masterpieces of Mineralogy, is now in the Pala International collection. Pictured at right is page 184 from the book; the kunzite specimen can be seen in the top right corner.

This aesthetic beauty has a long slender crystal attached to a short and stocky crystal. This kunzite is from Pech, Nuristan, Afghanistan.

The title Ikons comes from Wayne Thompson’s explanation of categorizing world-class specimens. Thompson gives us the tools, guidelines, and insight into how to go about building a world class mineral collection. The following in a excerpt from the introduction:

Some specimens have an unforgettable visual presence, such that their images stay in the memory of the viewer. Some combine exceptional quality with important provenance and historical significance. Others, although collected too recently to be considered “historical,” are among the finest of their type. The common unifying factor is the exceptional quality of each piece, but the particular historical aspects and flavor, so to speak, of their aesthetic impacts can also serve to categorize them in meaningful ways. … I call these three main categories “ikons,” “classics,” and “contemporary masterpieces.”

Ikons is available through The Mineralogical Record.

Kunzite spodumene, 9.7 x 4.2 x 1.7 cm. (Photo by John McLean)

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— End June Newsletter • Published 5/27/07 —

West Coast Gem & Mineral Show – May 18–20, 2007

Several members of the Pala staff will attend this show. See you there!

Event: West Coast Gem & Mineral Show
When: May 18–20, 2007
Where: Holiday Inn – Bristol Plaza, Costa Mesa, CA

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Pala’s Featured Mineral Specimen: Alexandrite

In this edition of Mineral News we feature an alexandrite sixling from the Griddlestone Claim in Zimbabwe.

The alexandrite specimen has a striking appearance with one well-formed sixling on one side and a partial larger spray on the other side. This dark and intense specimen even shows a good color change. The arms of the sixlings seem to penetrate throughout the entire specimen in etched terraces. Price upon request. See it for yourself in Dallas.

Alexandrite specimen, 111.8  grams, 50.0 x 48 x 34 mm. This specimen has been sold. (Photo: John McLean)

Visit our mineral search for a selection of alexandrites from around the world. [back to top]

Honey, I Shrunk the Geologist

No, these are not shrunken spelunkers, and Superman’s Fortress of Solitude has not been infiltrated. These are actual humans in the company of uber-selenite crystals found deep within the earth’s crust in the state of Chihuahua in north-central Mexico.

We repeat: These photographs are completely real—no Photoshop involved.

Naica’s giant dreamscape. Just imagine what this miner will wake up tomorrow thinking about. (Photo: Source unknown)

These spectacular oversized gem pockets were punctured in the pursuit of lead/zinc sulfide ore bodies in the Naica Mine (the largest lead mine in Mexico, operated by Industrias Peñoles), at a depth of 1200 feet below the surface. Entering the caves for longer than 5 minutes requires extra gear because the temperature is around 135 degrees Fahrenheit, with humidity over 90%. Heat is disseminated by a magma chamber that lies just 2–3 miles below the mine. Upon exploration of the caverns it became very apparent these were the largest free-standing crystals ever discovered. Amazingly, two crystal habits are shown: the long, columnar tree-sized formations and the radiating clusters with point terminations.

Is this for real? This miner tested his theory by pinching a selenite crystal. (Photo: Source unknown)

The mine has taken steps to preserve these caves intact, since collecting would be nearly impossible. Rumors are even circulating that tours may be available in a year, but this would be difficult since the selenite caves are within an active mining operation. Until then we can explore with our mind.

Read and see more on this out-of-this-world discovery:

• The Giant Crystal Project
• Naica Caves Website
• History of the Naica Crystal Caves
• Article from Geology, the journal of The Geological Society of America, April 2007

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Robbing the Sparry Garniture: A 200-Year History of British Mineral Dealers

Reviewed by William F. Larson

A new book appeared in Tucson this year, Robbing The Sparry Garniture: A 200-Year History of British Mineral Dealers, by Michael P. Cooper.

I highly recommend this fine history. Wonderfully researched, it is an obvious labor of love for the benefit of all of us in the mineral hobby. Through the first 68 pages the reader is given the scope of the book, the author’s sources, who qualified as a mineral dealer, distributors, etc. Then, starting on page 69, a directory of British mineral dealers, 1750–1950.

The writing is clear, concise, and often humorous. Mr. Cooper is a gifted writer who has a lot of knowledge to impart. The book is absolutely brilliant and well illustrated. It has great examples of various dealer’s labels that show why The Mineralogical Record has spent so much time documenting these “artifacts.” Kudos to Wendell Wilson and MinRec for publishing this wonderful book.

The title comes from a 1900s quote by F.W. Rudler (1840–1915):

The walls of these cavities are, in many cases, studded with crystals of quartz and other minerals for which the haematite mines have become famous. It is by robbing these cavities of their sparry garniture that we obtain those beautiful crystals which adorn our collections.

Available through The Mineralogical Record here.

The following photograph, taken from Robbing the Sparry Garniture, is in the introduction exhibiting how the collecting hobby can begin with a pretty face and a plateful of crystals.

Joshua Cristall (1768–1847) watercolor painting of a young Welsh girl selling quartz crystals by the roadside. Cristall is presumed to have painted this while touring north Wales and collecting from 1802–1803. Earliest depiction of mineral dealing in Great Britain. (Courtesy of Bolton Museum, Art Gallery and Aquarium)

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— End April Newsletter • Published 4/3/07 —

The University of Arizona Mineral Museum and Flandrau Science Center

A New Mineral Exhibit in Tucson

As if you didn’t have enough to do in Tucson, a new mineral exhibit, entitled “The Many Faces of Copper,” should be another sight to see. The exhibit will be held in the University of Arizona Mineral Museum, located on the lower level of the Flandrau Science Center. The grand opening of the new exhibit is February 2 and it will be on display thereafter.

A Tribute to Richard Bideaux (1935–2004)

Also on display at the UA Mineral Museum is an exhibit featuring minerals and memorabilia from the collection of the late author and mineralogist Richard Bideaux, a founder of the Mineralogical Record. According to the exhibit webpage, contributors include Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, the Geo-Literary Society, the GIA Library, Harvard Mineralogical Museum, Les and Paula Presmyk, and Phelps Dodge Mining Company. The exhibit runs through October 1, 2007. [back to top]

Pala’s New Secret

A new gem and mineral vault is nearing completion, set to showcase the “really good things” that have found their way into Pala’s collection. If you can find it, you are warned, “Abandon hope all ye who enter here.” It’s one hell of a collection!

The vault. A glimpse into the new hidden vault somewhere on the Pala International grounds. (Photo: Jason Stephenson)

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Ikons: Classics and Contemporary Masterpieces of Mineralogy

Wayne Thompson releases his new book, Ikons, as a soft cover supplement to the current issue of Mineralogical Record, as well as a special hard bound edition. It’s a colorful conglomeration of the world’s most famous mineral specimens. The book also provides the reader with a glimpse into the world of collecting, and thus it highlights minerals from the collecting era that can be traced back to the 16th century in Europe. Wayne catalogs the best examples from all the major mineral deposits, from the 1800s through the most recent finds. A well illustrated story of the collector’s "Ikons".

The book is available here.

The following photographs, taken from Ikons, are just a couple of the specimens with which Pala International’s Bill Larson has been personally involved.

Rhodochrosite on manganite. This famous specimen, aptly named “The Snail,” was acquired by Bill Larson in South Africa in 1976. (Photo: Jeffrey Scovil)

Emerald with calcite. Collected in 1978 at the Cosquez mine in Colombia, this specimen is said to be one of the finest emeralds on matrix known. (Photo: Harold and Erica Van Pelt)

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— End February Newsletter • Published 2/1/07 —