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Brought to you by Trevor Boyd - Minerals expert
People collect minerals for many different reasons; they are beautiful, they come in amazing colours and shapes, they have interesting names and come from all over the world. For minerals expert Trevor Boyd, there is also the excitement of the prospect of a new discovery, often found by ordinary collectors. This keeps collectors interested in learning about new specimens and finding out where they can obtain them.
Brilliant brucite
Northern Pakistan and Afghanistan are some of the most prolific mineral producing regions. Superb examples of 'pegmatite' mineral specimens come from here. They range from aquamarine to zircon and afghanite to xenotime! Gorgeous, eye-catching examples of bright yellow brucite specimens have come from the Balochistan region recently as well.
Some exceptional examples of dark brown rhombohedral siderite crystals (associated with colourless quartz) have also arrived on the mineral markets. Even though they are not as colourful as the brucite above, they often sell for high prices.
Not rare, still unique
Fluorite is perhaps one of the most popular and highly sought after minerals among collectors. Although it's quite common, it has the advantage of coming n a range of colours and habits (crystal shapes) and being relatively easy for collectors to obtain because it is so geographically widespread.
Occasionally a new find grabs the attention of collectors. One such recent find came from County Galway in Ireland. There was discovered a lovely blue-violet crystal. Ireland was never known as a great fluorite producing location, making these discoveries quite unusual and exceptional. Additionally a number of interesting factors were exhibited in these crystals: colour-zoning, phantoms, and beveled edges.
In Fujian, China, another wonderful find has come to light: blue fluorite. They were misleadingly marketed as blue ‘tanzanite’ fluorite even though they have nothing to do with tanzanite!
Green with envy
Moving away from blue and heading towards green, crystals have been discovered Ethiopia which display amazing shapes and colours.
Mineral auction sites can also be a good place to pick up a mineral specimen for a bargain price. I may be biased, but the Catawiki Minerals auctions do offer a fantastic range of minerals. Whether you're buying or selling, Catawiki is a great destination. Creating an account and registering as a seller are both free and new auctions start every Friday. Happy collecting!