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Welcome to the Mineral Nation - an interface for the best mineral collecting websites developed specifically for the needs of ALL mineral collectors. Back Helping The Mineral Community Educate, Organize, & Preserve Now LIVE ! The Mineral Nation Podcast Network Go New New Preview Minerals 101 Video Interviews Museums Symposiums The Shows Clubs/Societies Fine Minerals Display/Prep Books Periodicals Reference Photo-Video Field Collecting Online Forums Social Media The Dealers Universities Mineral Art MINfluential Mineral "Merchandites" Mineral Dealers Mineral Dealers New Mineral Dealers Mineral Dealers Mineral Dealers Mineral Dealers Gem Related Interests Fossils Meteorites Metaphysics Welcome to the Mineral Nation. Our goal is to provide you with an intuitive interface for online mineral collecting resources. Within the vast expanse of the Mineral Nation we have centralized many of your favorite mineralogical topics so you can optimize your internet searches. We ask you – the citizens of the Mineral Nation - to simply use and enjoy this portal for what is best for you. Let us welcome the beginning of this online mineralogical renaissance. Be part of it... Respectfully, Help build the Mineral Nation . . . Please send us your favorite links, content requests & suggestions. Contact Us mineralnation@gmail.com

Denver Shows Speaker Series Back 2021 Denver Hard Rock Summit Rhodochrosite Discussion Panel September 18, 2021 Joel Bartsch Aurore Giguet Re nate Lafler Bryan Lees Gail Spann George Sparks Dave Waismann Fluorite color and causes September 17, 2021 Dr. Virgil Lueth The Earth & Stars September 17, 2021 Dr. Peter Modreski Dr. Terry Wallace Fantastic Fluorite Finds of The Alps September 16, 2021 Ryan Bowling Colorado Fossil Discoveries September 16, 2021 Dr. Lou Taylor Most Colorful Mineral - Fluorite September 16, 2021 Jeff Scovil 2018 Denver Fine Mineral Show Mark Jacobson September 14, 2018 Crystal PeakCollecting 1873-1986 Teller County, CO USA Phil Persson September 15, 2018 Outstanding Minerals of Colorado Ore Deposits Collector's Edge Tomask Praszkier September 13, 2018 Minerals of Mibladen Morocco Evan Jones September 12, 2018 Wulfenite: The State Mineral of Arizona USA 2016 Denver Fine Mineral Show John Cornish September 16, 2016 Blistered Fingers

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Welcome to the world of Fine Minerals Coming Soon..... fine (ˈfīn): adj. 1. superior in kind, quality, or appearance Fine Minerals Back

Atomic # 3 Li Species = 115 Lithium In general terms, we might think of lithium as a thearapeutic. As an element, we finally get to the first solid, at least during ambient conditions on earth. Located in the second row at the extreme left side of the periodic table, we find lithium beneath hydrogen. Sorry, but if you like Star Trek, I still can’t find dilithium. Back to our element: lithium is rare in the universe but on earth is the 27th most common element. You might compare that to the first two elements – this group of three make up the sum total products of the Big Bang. Minerals containing lithium are common and collectible. Believe it or not, they are coveted by some collectors. Most of the minerals are likely to be found in lithium-rich pegmatites. Spodumene, which includes the varieties kunzite, triphane and hiddenite, is another silicate mineral with a formula of LiAlSi2O6. It is a silicate; further we find that it is a representative for the subclass of inosilicates. The rarity of lithium is an issue when you compare it to the rest of the main components in spodumene. They are all part of the Big Eight. About 8% by weight of a typical spodumene is composed of lithium oxide. Collectors have a special interest in the pink to purple color we find in crystals that are sold as kunzite. You will find out that it is a common practice among vendors to use varietal names with or without the proper species names. Rickwood, 1981, describes a giant spodumene where the length is 12.80 m and the weight is 379,480 kg; it is from South Dakota. Petalite, a lot less common than spodumene, is far less sought after by collectors. It can be on the pricey side and lacks much color in many examples. The formula is similar to spodumene – LiAlSi4O10. It is also a silicate. We note crystals are not easily found – another negative factor for many mineral collectors. After all, we really want crystals! Montebrasite and a relatively similar species, amblygonite, are a pair of phosphates that contain lithium. So, here we have the elements phosphorus and lithium, both lying outside the Big Eight. The difference between the two species is based on whether your sample contains OH (montebrasite) or F, which will be amblygonite. This is not easily determined. Both species are mainly composed of the same elements: lithium, aluminum and the phosphate radical. Crystals are available, medium-priced and of some interest to collectors. Finally, lepidolite, a lithium mica, is probably thought to be more common than it really is based on recent study. Further, a review of the name shows us that it is not a currently valid species. In spite of all these conditions, it is often found in collections and vendors may offer the samples labeled lepidolite. Crystals are easily acquired and generally inexpensive. Colors can vary but pink and purple samples seem to be the most desirable to collectors. Back, 2018 indicates two species that are probably the correct names for most of the specimens we used to call lepidolite. Those two species are trilithionite and polylithionite. For lithium production, all of these minerals contain a few per cent of lithium, average values are around 10% lithium oxide. We also note some production occurs from brines. The lithium composes about 45% of the oxide so we would need a lot of raw material to get much lithium. Massive quantities do occur occasionally so the supply is not a critical problem. Other species you may see used for a source and even collected by scientists include cryolithionite, eucryptite, cookeite, zinnwaldite, manandoite, triphylite, lithiophilite, fremontite, and sicklerite. Some of these are not currently classified as valid species according to Back, 2018. An example analysis of lepidolite is representative for the element lithium. K2O 10.02 FeO 0.04 Li2O 3.70 MnO 0.92 See Handbook for ideal and empirical Al2O3 28.83 CaO trace formulas. SiO2 48.58 Na2O 0.87 F 4.93 Rb2O 0.91 H2O+ 2.56 Cs2O 0.16 H2O- 0.54 -O= F2 2.08 Total = 100.08 This sample was from the Stewart mine, Pala, California. [Via Handbook] Perhaps you already noticed the rather low percentage of lithium oxide in the sample above. Yet, because lithium is in the ideal formula, I consider it to be a good representative of this element in a mineral.

Blue Cap Productions Mineral Talks Live Mineral Talks Live Sponsors: Blue Cap Productions / SMMP / Harvard Mineralogical & Geological Museum Back Episode 84 - Wim Vertriest Ep 84 - March 6, 2024 GIA Manager,Field Gemology Bangkok Thailand Episode 83 - Joaquim Callen Ep 83 - February 7, 2024 Mineral Photographer Barcelona, Catalonia European Union Episode 82 - Rebecca Johnston Ep 82 - January 3, 2024 Mineral Artist Seattle, WA USA Episode 81 - Robert Meyers Ep 81- December 6, 2023 Private Collector London, England UK Episode 80 - Rick Kennedy Ep 80- October 4, 2023 Owner Earth's Treasures San Jose, CA USA Episode 79 - John Koivula Ep 79- October 4, 2023 GIA Analytical Microscopist Carlsbad, CA USA Episode 78 - Dr. Martin Stevko Ep 78- September 6, 2023 Field Collector & Researcher Bratislava Slovakia Episode 77 - John Cornish Ep 77- August 2, 2023 Field Collector & Mineral Collecting Advocate Port Angeles, WA USA Episode 76 - James & Charelle Webb Ep 76- July 5, 2023 Owners The Focal Crystal Houston, TX USA Episode 75 - Dr. Gabriela Farfan Ep 75- June 7, 2023 Curatrix Smithsonian Museum Washington D.C. USA Episode 74 - Les Presmyk Ep 74- May 3, 2023 Mining Engineer Field Collector Phoenix, AZ USA Episode 73 - Dr. Skip Simmons Ep 73- April 5, 2023 Professor Emeritus University of New Orleans Louisiana USA Episode 72 - Jeff Swanger Ep 72- March 1, 2023 Owner/Operator Oceanview Mine Pala, CA USA Episode 71 - David Wilber Ep 71- February 3, 2023 Mineral Collecting Pioneer Salt Lake City, UT USA Episode 70 - Bob and Evan Jones Ep 70- January 4, 2023 Mineral Collectors & Authors Phoenix, AZ USA Episode 69 - Ksenia Levterova Ep 69- December 21, 2022 Mineral Artist Kyiv Ukraine Episode 68 - Dr. Jeffrey Post Ep 68 - December 7, 2022 Curator US National Gem & Mineral Collection Smithsonian Museum Washington D.C. USA Episode 67 - Ghulam Mustafa Ep 67- November 2, 2022 Founder Fine Art Minerals Peshawar Pakistan Episode 66 - Dr. Aaron Celestian Ep 66- October 5, 2022 Curator of Mineral Sciences Natural History Museum of Los Angeles USA Episode 65 - John White Ep 65- September 15, 2022 Founder The Mineralogical Record USA Episode 64 - Roy Starkey Ep 64- August 3, 2022 Mineral Book Author Worcestershire United Kingdom Episode 63 - Tomek Praszkier Ep 63- July 6, 2022 Founder Spirifer Minerals Warsaw Poland Episode 62 - Federico Balocher Ep 62- June 1, 2022 International Gem & Mineral Dealer Bangkok Thailand Episode 61 - Dr. Malcomb Southwood Ep 61- May 4, 2022 Geologist Tsumeb Specialist Melbourne, Victoria Australia Episode 60 - Dr. Bob Downs Ep 60- April 6, 2022 Mineralogist University of Arizona Tucson, AZ USA Episode 59 - Naomi Sarna Ep 60- March 2, 2022 Jewelry Artist New York, NY USA Episode 58 - Bob Jackson Ep 58- February 2, 2022 Founder: Geology Adventures 2022 American Mineral Heritage Award recipient Episode 57 - Eric Fritz Ep 57- January 12, 2022 Director: U of A Alfie Norville Gem & Mineral Museum Tucson, AZ USA Episode 56 - Jean-Claude Bouillard Ep 56- December 1, 2021 Curator: Sorbonne University Mineral Museum Paris, France Episode 55 - Dr. Virgil Lueth Ep 55- November 3, 2021 Director Mineral Museum New Mexico Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources Episode 54 - Laszlo Kupi Ep 54- October 6, 2021 Fine Mineral Photographer Budapest, Hungary Episode 53 - Doug & Rich Graeme Ep 53- September 1, 2021 Private Collectors Tucson, AZ USA Episode 52 - Dr. Aaron Palke Ep 52- August 4, 2021 Senior Mgr. of Research GIA Carlsbad, CA USA Episode 51 - Dr. George Harlow Ep 51- July 20, 2021 Curator Emeritus American Museum New York, NY USA Episode 50 - Dona and Wayne Leicht Ep 50- June 2, 2021 Founders: Kristalle Laguna Beach, CA USA Episode 49 - Dr. Robert M. Hazen Ep 49- May 26, 2021 Senior Scientist Carnegie Earth and Planets Laboratory Episode 48 - Rui Galopim de Carvalho Ep 48- May 19, 2021 Gem Education Consultant Lisboa, Portugal Episode 47 - Nicolai Medvedev Ep 47- May 12, 2021 Intarsia Artist Tucson, AZ USA Episode 46 - Barbra Barrett & Carl Francis Ep 46- May 5, 2021 Maine Mineral and Gem Museum Bethel, Maine USA Episode 45 - Edward Boehm Ep 45- April 29, 2021 Founder RareSource Chatanooga, TN USA Episode 44 - Shelly Sergent Ep 44- April 21, 2021 Curatrix: Somewhere in The Rainbow Episode 43 - J. Alex Speer Ep 43- April 14, 2021 Senior Fellow: Mineralogical Society of America Episode 42 - Dr. Elizabeth Rampe Ep 42- April 7, 2021 Geologist - NASA's Johnson Space Center Houston, TX USA Episode 41 - Alan Hart Ep 41- March 31, 2021 CEO: Gem-A London, England, UK Episode 40 - Kimberly Vagner Ep 40- March 24, 2021 Director:Gems&Minerals Perot Museum Dalls, TX USA Episode 39 - Dr. Andreas Stucki Ep 39- March 17, 2021 Owner: Siber & Siber Zurich, Switzerland Episode 38 - Dr. Alex Schauss Ep 38- March 10, 2021 Private Thumbnail Collector Tucson, AZ USA Episode 37 - Dr. Bruce Cairncross Ep 37- March 3, 2021 Professor of Geology University of Johannesburg South Africa Episode 36 - Stuart Wilensky Ep 36 - February 24, 2021 Wilensky Exquisite Minerals Gallery New York, NY USA Episode 35 - Joe Dorris Ep 35- February 17, 2021 Founder Pinnacle 5 Minerals Colorado USA Episode 34 - Paula Crevoshay Ep 34- February 10, 2021 Crevoshay Jewelry Albuquerque, NM USA Episode 33 - Dr. Federico Pezzotta Ep 33- February 3, 2021 Curator Natural History Museum of Milan, Italy Episode 32 - Jeff Scovil Ep 32 - January 27, 2021 Master Photographer Scovil Photography Phoenix, AZ USA Episode 31 - Dr. Gene Meieran Ep 31 - January 13, 2021 Private Collector Intel Fellow Oregon, USA Episode 30 - Bryan Swoboda Ep 30 - January 6, 2021 Founder BlueCap Productions Honolulu, Hawaii USA Episode 29 - Jordi Fabre Ep 29 - December 16, 2020 Founder Fabre Minerals Barcelona, Spain Episode 28 - Fabian Wildfang Ep 28 - December 9, 2020 Private Collector Mullheim, Germany Episode 27 - Tom Gressman & Christi Cramer Ep 27 - December 2, 2020 The Mineralogical Record Tucson, AZ USA Episode 26 - Dr. Frank Keutsch Ep 26 - November 25, 2020 Professor of Chemistry Harvard University Cambridge, MA USA Episode 25 - Gloria Staebler Ep 25 - November 18, 2020 Lithographie LTD Denver, CO USA Episode 24 - Gail and Jim Spann Ep 24 - November 11, 2020 Private Collectors Dallas, TX USA Episode 23 - Emanuele Marini Ep 23 - November 4, 2020 Founder Nimeral Mineral Labs Milano, Italy Episode 22 - Katherine Dunnell Ep 22 - October 28, 2020 Earth Science Technician Royal Ontario Museum Toronto, Canada Episode 21 - Tama Higuchi Ep 21 - October 21, 2020 Mineral Artist Dallas, TX USA Episode 20 - Dr. Terry Wallace Ep 20 - October 14, 2020 Director Emeritus Los Alamos National Lab New Mexico, USA Episode 19 - Sami Makki Ep 19 - October 7, 2020 Matrix India Minerals Pune, India Episode 18 - Stefan Nicolescu Ep 18 - September 30, 2020 Collections Manager Yale Peabody Museum New Haven, CT USA Episode 17 - Jack Halpbern Ep 17 - September 23, 2020 Private Collector San Francisco, CA USA Episode 16 - Daniel Trinchillo Ep 16 - September 16, 2020 Founder Fine Minerals International Edison, NJ USA Episode 15 - Collector's Edge Ep 15 - September 9, 2020 Bryan Lees, Steve Behling, Richard Jackson & Phil Persson Episode 14 - George Rossman Ep 14 - September 2, 2020 Professor of Mineralogy California Institute of Tech Episode 13 - Salim Edde Ep 13 - August 26, 2020 Founder mim Museum Beirut Lebanon Episode 12 - Jolyon Ralph Ep 12 - August 19, 2020 Founder Mindat.org London, UK Episode 11 - BIll Larson Ep 11 - August 12, 2020 Private Collector Fallbrook, CA USA Episode 10 - Ryan Roney Ep 10 - August 5, 2020 Curator Telus Science Museum Georgia Episode 9 - Dr. Vera Hammer Ep 9 - July 29, 2020 Curatrix Natural History Museum Vienna, Austria Episode 8 - Dr. John Rakovan Ep 8 - July 22, 2020 Professor Geology & Earth Sciences Miami University Episode 7 - Patrick Dreher Ep 7 - July 15, 2020 Master Carver Dreher Carvings Idar Oberstein Germany Episode 6 - Diana and Ian Bruce Ep 6 - July 8, 2020 Owners Crystal Classics UK Episode 5 - Dr. Raquel Alonso-Perez Ep 5 - July 1, 2020 Curatrix Min&Geo Museum @ Harvard Episode 4 - Thomas Bellicam Ep 4 - June 24, 2020 MARCOM Mgr. Ste. Marie aux-Mines Show Episode 3 - Peter Megaw Ep 3 - June 17, 2020 Private Collector of Mexican Minerals Episode 2 - Dr. Robert Lavinsky Ep 2 - June 10, 2020 Founder The Arkenstone Episode 1 - Dr. Eloise Gaillou Ep 1 - June 3, 2020 Curatrix Paris School of Mines Back

Social Media Back Social Media is redefining our communication throughout the Mineral Nation. It has created greater accessibility to seminars, live mineral shows, and new market spaces. It has shortened geographic distances and encouraged information sharing. The future content of this area will discuss the differences between the various platforms and how to more efficiently access their content to accomplish your individual goals. Social Media is proving to be a worthy solution for inclusivity and participation in our hobby regardless of location or personal limitations. More to come, Coming Soon Facebook Instagram FB Messenger Twitter What's App You Tube

Learn about Mineral Photography / Photographing Minerals / Mineral Photos / Mineral Photography Introduction Groups & Resources Equipment Smart Phone Tips Publishing Photos Photographer Locator Smartphone Mineral Photography b y Christi Cramer Reprinted with the permission of The Mineralogical Record Photographing Minerals b y Jeff Scovil Minerals Day 2022 The Mineralogical Society of America Video View Video

Friends Of Mineralogy Pennsylvania Chapter Symposium To Site Back 2020 Session 1 - Jeri Jones Session 2 - Joe Marchesani Session 3 - Dr. Peter Heaney Session 4 - BIll Stephens

Learn about Minerals / Minerals 101 / Mineral classes / Mineral education / Rocks & Minerals 101 Back Intro to Rocks and Minerals Video Series The Mineral Explorers Dr. Nick Geo Girl Every Rock has a Story Mineral of the Week Minerals Every Day Mineralogy4kids Other Kid Resources Plan a trip below to learn more Mineral Museums Rock & Mineral Clubs Rock & Mineral Shows

Mineral City TV Tucson, AZ USA To Site Back 2024 ( Season 3 ) Click Here - during the Tucson show 2023 ( Season 2) Mineral City TV Introduction Mineral City Party - Part 1 Mineral City Party - Part 2 Mineral City Party - Part 3 Mineral City Party - Final Interviews Alex Schauss Collection Building G expansion Spirifer Minerals Arkenstone Rocko Minerals The Mineral Vault John Rakovan Jeff Scovil 2022 ( Season 1) Mineral City TV Intro Part 1 Mineral City TV Intro Part 2 Mineral City Wrap-up The Sunnywood Collection 2 Trepca Mine and E minerals Way Too Cool UV Lamp Fixtures Wendel Minerals Wendy's Minerals Bonus Demetrius Pohl Evan Jones - Milpillas Mine Back Adelaide Mining Co Axinite Minerals Crystal Cantina Dennis Beals Minerals Earth's Treasures Enchanted Minerals Krichbaum & Lynch Jonathan's Mineral Exchange KARP Marco Tironi Marveilles De La Terre Mineralia Mineralogical Record Miner's Lunchbox Mintang Nimeral Minlab Persson Rare Minerals Pinnacle 5 Minerals Pyritas De Najajun Reel Mine Rocko Minerals Spirifer Minerals Stonetrust The Sunnywood Collection 1 Interviews

Back Seeking minerals where you will find certain elements? There are 92 natural elements and several others that are man-made. So, we can start with this group; a periodic table might be helpful to have available when we go forward. Out of 92, I will eliminate 20 because there are NO minerals that contain essential contents of these. Another way to look at this is to say the ideal formula, as we may find in (Back, 2018) does not include a given element. Among the pesky 20, I will include the noble gases. They are helium, neon, argon, krypton, xenon and radon. The rest are [by symbols] Ac, At, Eu, Fr, Ho, Lu, Pa, Pm, Po,Pr, Tb, Tc, Tm and Ra. So, that’s the ones we don’t care about for now. If you bear with me, we might also decide to pay little attention to 24 more elements because they have 35 or less species each using, again, their ideal formula to determine who makes the cut. Follow along on the periodic table as this list is in order from top to bottom. 21 – scandium has 18 minerals. 31 – gallium has 7 minerals. 32 – germanium has 33 minerals. 35 – bromine has 12 minerals. 37 – rubidium has 3 minerals. 44 –ruthenium has 8 minerals. 45 – rhodium has 15 minerals. 48 – cadmium has 27 minerals. 49 – indium has 14 minerals. 53 – iodine has 28 minerals. 55 – cesium has 24 minerals. 60 – neodymium has 28 minerals. 62 – samarium has 2 minerals. 64 – gadolinium has only 1 mineral. 66 – dysprosium is a problem, it may have one or possibly none! 68 – erbium has only 1 mineral. 70 – ytterbium has 5 minerals. 72 – hafnium has only 1 mineral. 75 – rhenium has 2 minerals. 76 – osmium has 7 minerals. 77 – iridium has18 minerals. 78 – platinum has32 minerals. 79 – gold has 33 minerals. Finally, 90-thorium has 35 minerals. So, you can collect these but I have decided to focus elsewhere as I want to go where we can at least hope to find a specimen available. Let's go to the other end of the spectrum and look at the group I call the Big Eight. They are the most common elements in the earth’s crust and have lots of minerals that are fun to study. The list of eight includes oxygen, silicon, aluminum, iron, calcium, sodium, potassium and magnesium. Many of these have more than 1,000 minerals [again based on the ideal formula] and we might make a special note of oxygen with over 4,000; silicon has over 1,500. Believe it or not, hydrogen has over 3,000 and isn’t even that common in the earth’s crust. It ranks tenth overall. One source says that the Big Eight make up 99.9 % of the crust. One way we see minerals grouped is according to chemical groups. Using a somewhat arbitrary list of 17 main groups, I have found that 13 contain oxygen. The other four are native elements, sulfides, sulfosalts and halides. Among the rest, 12 groups are based on radicals that have oxygen such as carbonate. They also contain carbon too. The Rock-forming minerals may account for over 200 species and most of them are silicates. Here is one example for you to consider. Uranium, number 92, is an element where you might think there are few choices for a collector. Well, it turns out that there are nearly 300 species. that is a bit odd considering the fact that uranium is 50th in terms of rarity in the crust. Further, only 19 elements have more species than uranium. A common example is the species uraninite which may be sold as pitchblende. Autunite and torbernite are a couple of others. We also notice a lot of species may have a little uranium present but again not in the ideal formula. Zircons with this property are called cyrtolites and we see them in pegmatites now and then. Also, certain minerals that are U-rich may also have a little Th, Ra, Pb, and Po present. Beryllium has only about 125 minerals yet it is slightly more common than uranium in the crust; it ranks 44th . The number of species has little to do with the rarity or lack thereof for a given element. Compare arsenic that ranks 47th and has over 600 species. This series will present short articles telling you a bit more about each element and its minerals. - Bill Shelton Back