Gem Tabular Ruby Cluster: An Unique Crystal Habit
Most ruby specimens are either high-priced single/group of crystals on a marble matrix, or cheap massive habit rough from India. Not so here. This cluster of hundreds (or thousands) of intersecting crystals screams color and brightness, and has a delicate, not seen...
Pyromorphite and Plumbogummite – A Midwave Glow
There's been some cornfusion about the fluorescence of pyromorphite lately in the Fluorescent Minerals Facebook Group. I'll try and summarize, but invite others to wikify. For our purposes the nicest pyromorphite comes from the Bunker Hill Mine, Kellogg, Idaho, from...
Carpathite Crystals from San Benito Co., California, USA
Rick Kennedy surprised most folks in the FMS Fluorescent Mineral Group (FB) by posting pics of this magnificent cluster of carpathite crystals. Carpathite (karpatite) is a very rare hydrocarbon mineral first described in 1955. In California it appears as a low...
Fluorescent, Phosphorescent and Thermoluminescent Fluorite from the Globe Mine (Rio Arriba)
This article was originally published by Stefano Buzzoni on Nature's Rainbow.This kind of fluorite was well described by Robbins (1984). “...This material is opaque, and greenish or gray in daylight. Under long wave, the fluorescence is violet. Under short wave, the...
Cuspidine under Longwave UV
We have a bunch of folks attending the Franklin "SuperDigg" this April (2017). Many of them are carrying the new Convoy 365nm LW flashlight (see the GlowNotes article on this light) so I thought it would be nice to give folks an idea of what many of the minerals they...
Esperite under Longwave UV
We have a bunch of folks attending the Franklin "SuperDigg" this April (2017). Many of them are carrying the new Convoy 365nm LW flashlight (see the GlowNotes article on this light) so I thought it would be nice to give folks an idea of what many of the minerals they...
Colorless beryl, var. goshenite – Xuebaoding Mine, Pingwu, Sichuan, China
Colorless beryl, var. goshenite, which is permeated with very fine scheelite dust and thus fluoresces in shortwave UV. Xuebaoding Mine, Pingwu, Sichuan, China. This spectrum compares the emission of a scheelite specimen to that of beryl var. goshenite. The...
Thermoluminescence in Greenland Sodalite
While experimenting with Afghan sodalite, and after discussion on the Fluorescent Minerals Facebook Group, I decided to try Greenland sodalite and see if it was thermoluminescent. That was the natural question raised by members of the Facebook group. Very interesting...
Thermoluminescent Sodalite (Hackmanite) from Afghanistan
I was preparing for a photoshoot tonight, cleaning the specimens of all the lint and hairs that tend to accumulate on them. I was using a MAP torch to lightly burn the little buggers from all the nooks and crannies (a hint learned from the Fluorescent Mineral Group on...
Romancing the Stone: A Brief History of Tugtupite
“For ages, the Inuit of Greenland have understood the power of tugtupite. Legend has it that lovers can cause the stone to glow fiery red just from the heat of their romance. The brilliance and vibrant colors announce the intensity of their love.” (MinerShop -...