Mineral suite
Worldwide thumbnails
Subcollection focusing on thumbnail-sized specimens from all over the world. Main criteria while picking these specimens was their aesthetics, complete crystals and variety of colors. Handling them can be tricky, but seeing them all in one place, not taking too much of it, makes you realize where the love for them comes from. This suite is separated into 6 shelves, as shown on this page, from top to bottom.
Mineral Shelf A (Number 1)
A01
Pyromorphite
Daoping Mine, Gongcheng Co., Guilin, Guangxi, China
Classic, apple-green cluster of pyromorphite crystals on some matrix.
A02
Red Beryl
Wah Wah Mountains, Beaver County, Utah, USA
Flawless, vibrant and sharp crystal of red beryl perched on top of the contrasting matrix.
A03
Native copper
Andrassy III mine, Rudabanya, Hungary
A nice dendritic arrangement of native copper crystals from an unusual European locality.
A04
Mimetite
Pingtouling Mine, Liannan County, Qingyuan, China
Artistic arrangement of these caramel-like crystals of mimetite from the well-known locality.
A05
Vanadinite
ACF Mine, Mibladen, Meknes - Tafilalet, Morocco
Red crystals of vanadinite forming an appealing rose on top of a stem made out of goethite.
A06
Dolomite
Azkarate Quarry, Eugi/Eugui, Esteribar, Spain
Twinned crystals of water-clear dolomite on top a small stem of dolomite acting as matrix.
A07
Apatite
Cerro de Mercado, Durango Region, Mexico
Clear crystal of apatite on top of matrix.
A08
Cuprian adamite
Hilarion Mine, Kamariza Mines, Lavrion, East Attica, Greece
Specimens of cuprian adamite are known for their vibrant color. So is this one with the contrasting matrix.
A09
Fluorite
La Viesca mine, La Collada District, Asturias, Spain
Two cubes of fluorite with easily visible zones wonderfully placed on top of some calcite matrix.
A10
Kutnohorite
Wessels Mine, Hotazel, Kalahari, South Africa
Balance between the colorful kuthonorite radial crystals and white calcite. Back of the specimen looks like a popcorn.
A11
Smithsonite
Kelly Mine, Magdalena, Socorro County, New Mexico, USA
Classis material from the Kelly mine, although not comonly seen in this size. Nice color and contrast.
A12
Amethyst
Mamuju Regency, West Sulawesi Province, Indonesia
Multiple aggregates of amethyst crystals forming this crystal worm providing a great example of the material.
A13
Topaz
Mina Veronica, El Copetillo, Zacatecas, Mexico
Favorite specimen of this material I’ve ever seen. Three aesthetically balanced crystals on top of some matrix.
A14
Tetrahedrite
Brixlegg, Kufstein District, Tyrol, Austria
Tetrahedrite (so called “schwartzite”) with a perfect shape on top of some calcite matrix with great luster.
A15
Native copper
Keweenaw Peninsula, Houghton, Michigan, USA
Nicely crystalized copper crystals perched on top of a nice prehnite cluster acting as matrix and giving proper contrast.
A16
Cerussite
Touissit, Jerada Province, Oriental Region, Morocco
Amazing and well-balanced ‘V’ twin of cerussite showing a pretty nice luster and overall shape.
A17
Selenite
Gant Harasztos Locality, Fejer, Hungary
Can you even see the specimen? Water-clear selenite crystal with super sharp edges and a nice form.
A18
Cavansite
Wagholi Quarries, Wagholi, Pune District, Maharashtra, India
A classic ball of cavansite on top of some stilbite crystals creating a not-so-classic formation. Great contrast and balance.
A19
Crocoite
The Adelaide Mine, Dundas, Tasmania, Australia
Just two crystals of crocoite with a good color creating a nice ‘V’ shape and arrangement.
A20
Dioptase
Tantara Mine, Shinkolobwe, Kambove District, Haut-Katanga, DR Congo
Two crystals of dioptase with an already good color making for an even better display with the appealing blue matrix.
A21
Plumbogummite
Gongcheng, Gulin, Guangx Zhuang A.R., China
Pseudomorphosis of plumbogummite after pyromorphite showing good color and some unaltered crystals too.
A22
Amethyst
Sary Shagan, Moiynkum, Jambyl Region, Kazakhstan
Super sharp amethyst crystal on top of some matrix covered in quartz with a good color.
A23
Goethite
Tharsis, Alosno, Huelva, Andalusia, Spain
Iridescent crystals of goethite create this colorful and playful specimen that is a great addition to every mineral case.
A24
Chrysocolla
Tenke-Fungurume area, Lualaba, DR Congo
A small cactus made out of quartz crystals covering chrysocolla crystals. On back, some primary malachite crystals are visible, as well.
A25
Wulfenite
APEX mine, San Carlos, Chihuahua, Mexico
Sharp, vibrant and greatly placed crystal of wulfenite on top of a just as appealing matrix of quartz.
A26
Calcite
La Sambre quarry, Landelies, Hainaut, Wallonia, Belgium
Collected by a friend, with an in-situ photo, extracted for me. Great crystal of calcite on top of a calcite stem. Astonishing.
A27
Cavansite
Wagholi Quarries, Pune District, Maharashtra, India
A tiny ball of cavansite. That is it. Nothing more to add, but it is still really cute and awesome that you want to keep it forever.
Mineral Shelf B (Number 2)
B28
Cinnabar
Sofiya Mine, Nikitovka Hg Deposit, Donetsk, Ukraine
Multiple intergrown, twinned crystals of the mercury mineral cinnabar. These crystals show a great cherry color when backlit.
B29
Azurite
Hanover-Fierro Mining District, New Mexico, USA
Rossette made out of flawless azurite crystals creating an appealing specimen that could easily be neglected because of it’s size, but not beauty.
B30
Chalcopyrite
Edong, Daye, Huangshi District, Hubei Province, China
An amazing iridescent chalcopyrite crystal protected by a few scalenohedral crystal spikes of calcite.
B31
Malachite
Planet Mine, La Paz County, Arizona, USA
Botryoidal malachite crystals on top of a darker, contrasting, matrix from the famous Planet mine in the United States.
B32
Sulphur
Cianciana, Agrigento Province, Sicily, Italy
A super vibrant group of sulphur crystals from the famous locality wonderfully perched on top of a snow-white aragonite matrix.
B33
Crandallite
Mauldin Mt., Montgomery Co., Arkansas, USA
Amazing pseudomorph of crandallite after wavellite. This specimen consists of two flawless spheres of equal size connected to eachother.
B34
Quartz
Mamuju Regency, West Sulawesi Province, Indonesia
Multiple spheres of quartz crystals in a green color. Unlike the usual “grape” amethyst from Indonesia, this one shows green color, showing another example of the material.
B35
Azurite
Kerrouchene, El Kbab, Béni Mellal-Khénifra, Morocco
Sharp and partially gemmy crystals of azurite from a classic Moroccan locality. Finding a specimen like this in a not-so-great mineral shop makes it even better.
B36
Quartz
Black Knife group, Cuchillo Negro, Sierra, New Mexico, USA
Sharp single crystal of quartz pseudomorph after calcite with a hollow bottom covered in a few mint colored fluorites.
B37
Wulfenite
Mibladen, Midelt Province, Drâa-Tafilalet Region, Morocco
Sharp, geometric, vibrant crystals of wulfenite on top of some contrasting matrix. Not a wonder that this specimen took the cover photo of this suite.
B38
Calcite
Charcas Municipality, San Luis Potosi, Mexico
A really nice and unusual scepter of calcite looking like a nail head. This is a characteristic piece from Charcas. Sharp termination.
B39
Quartz
Sidi Rahal, El Kelaâ des Sraghna Province, Morocco
A perfect white snowball made out of quartz crystals. Most likely fallen out of a characteristic quartz geode from Morocco.
B40
Crandallite
Mauldin Mt., Montgomery Co., Arkansas, USA
Pseudomorph of crandallite after wavellite. This specimen consists of two flawless spheres connected to eachother on a crust, creating a snowman appearance.
B41
Dolomite
Sonnwendstein, Maria Schutz, Lower Austria, Austria
Really interesting crystals of dolomite on top of some matrix from an unusual locality. This specimen was purchased at the 2023 Munich Show.
B42
Calcite
Grabiszyce Quarry, Gmina Leśna, Lubań County, Poland
Spiky specimen of calcite with an intense color from the famous Grabiszyce Quarry. Still on the search for a lemon-yellow ball of calcite from the same mine, but another level.
B43
Marcasite
Cap Blanc-Nez, Escalles, Calais, Pas-de-Calais, France
Sharp crystals of marcasite penetrating each other and showing a twinned habit. Specimens from Cap Blanc-Nez do make a wonderful appearance.
B44
Celestine
Sakoany deposit, Katsepy, Mitsinjo, Boeny, Madagascar
Super sharp, clear and overall fascinating specimen of celestite from a classic locality. A locality and mineral I usually pass on, but this one didn’t have to ask twice to be taken.
B45
Cobaltoan calcite
Mashamba West Mine, Sicomines, Kolwezi, DR Congo
A classic vibrant pink specimen gifted by Luka Berković to me in the form of a geode, which I then processed into multiple specimens.
B46
Calcite
Tennecape, Hants County, Nova Scotia, Canada
Not much to say about this one, yet its appearance does say quite a few words. Super lustrous and sharp crystal of calcite gifted to me by Allan Smith.
B47
Baryte
Fehér Hegy, Tokaj Mountains, Baranya county, Hungary
Single crystal of golden colored baryte on top of some matrix covered in lustrous quartz crystals.
B48
Azurite
Chessy Copper Mines, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, France
Book-like crystals of azurite with a really good color. This specimen was overviewed in a huge flat because of its size, but was an ideal specimen for myself.
B49
Rutile
Diamantina Municipality, Minas Gerais, Brazil
My favorite twinned rutile specimen from this find I’ve ever been able to see. Super lustrous, partly allowing light to go through it and in a not-so-small size.
B50
Wulfenite
Kuruktag Mountains, Xinjang Uygur, China
Unusual wulfenite from China with an intense color on top of some contrasting matrix. Purchased from Fabio Famagnini at the 2023 Munich show.
B51
Ruby
Ampanihy, Atsimo-Andrefana, Madagascar
It is always nice to see complete crystals with some color on them. This corundum var ruby specimen shows why.
B52
Chrysocolla
Planet Mine, La Paz County, Arizona, USA
Flawless, vibrant and perfectly placed ball of chrysocolla on top of some lighter blue matrix. This is what I collect and the reason why I collect thumbnails.
B53
Aquamarine
Xuan Le, Thường Xuân District, Thanh Hóa Province, Vietnam
Terminated, small crystal of beryl var aquamarine with a nice color and sharp sides.
B54
Marcasite
Seilles, Andenne, Namur, Wallonia, Belgium
A small group of crystals of lustrous marcasite on top of a matrix made out of siderite pseudomorph calcite crystals, with a hollow bottom.
Mineral Shelf C (Number 3)
C55
Emerald
Torrington mining district, New South Wales, Australia
Sharp and terminated crystal of beryl var emerald with an interesting darker zoning in the center of the crystal.
C56
Melanite
Diakon, Bafoulabé Cercle, Kayes Region, Mali
Simple and classic crystal of melanite (garnet) with an ideal crystal shape, in good condition with some interesting surface texture.
C57
Wulfenite
Ojuela mine, Mapimi, Durango, Mexico
Crystal of yellow wulfenite on top of rough dark limonite, making the light wulfenite crystal “pop out” even better.
C58
Gypsum
Great Salt Plains, Oklahoma State, USA
A wonderful spray of gypsum crystals filled with sand/clay from the famous salt plains.
C59
Olmiite
N'Chwaning II Mine, Kuruman, Kalahari, South Africa
Bowtie consisting of lighter colored crystals of olmiite with an incredible luster.
C60
Olmiite
N'Chwaning II Mine, Kuruman, Kalahari, South Africa
A flawless, sharp crystal crystal of olmiite with a good color on top of some darker matrix, creating an amazing specimen for this species and locality.
C61
Calcite
Leffe quarry, Leffe, Dinant, Namur, Wallonia, Belgium
Sharp calcite crystal with a lighter color with a darker “hat” made by a second generation of darker calcite.
C62
Siderite
Stari Trg, Trepča mines, Kosovo, Serbia
Nature’s work of art. An interesting composition of siderite crystals with a perfect detail – small clear calcite crystal in one of the corners.
C63
Rutile
Municipal de Novo Horizonte, Bahia, Brazil
Sharp and yellow spray of rutile crystals on top of some shiny hematite crystals making a classic, yet always fun to see, appearance.
C64
Siderite
Nikolaevskiy Mine, Dal'negorsk, Russia
Dal’negorsk sure can surprise you with a specimen like this. Two balls of siderite, on one side covered with calcite, creating a snowman.
C65
Marcasite
12th Horizont, Stari Trg, Trepča, Kosovo, Serbia
Pseudomorph of marcasite after pyrrhotite covered in a few crystals of calcite on top of a rhodochrosite matrix.
C66
Vanadinite
Taouz, Er Rachidia Province, Drâa-Tafilalet Region, Morocco
Definitely one of our favorites. Incredible arsenic-bearing crystals of vanadinite on top of a dark matrix. Ideal specimen for our collection.
C67
Baryte
Book Cliffs, Grand Junction, Mesa, Colorado, USA
Water-clear crystal of baryte on top of some matrix covered in quartz producing an artistic arrangement every baryte collector can wish for.
C68
Native copper
Champion Mine, Adams Township, Michigan, USA
A small, yet so effective “branch”. Dendritic crystals of native copper in their full potential. Being from a famous mine from Michigan adds to the experience.
C69
Halite
La Pepita mine, Agoncillo, La Rioja, Spain
I beg you not to use this one to spice up your meal. Just a perfect crystal cube of halite on top of some matrix (pretty sure the matrix is salty too).
C70
Olmiite
NChwaning II Mine, Kalahari NorthernCape, South Africa
Completely different looks on this olmiite than the previous ones you’ve (hopefully) seen. It even has a small quartz crystal on the matrix.
C71
Staurolite
Mount Ibity, Antananarivo, Madagascar
Twinned specimen of complete staurolite crystals creating a cross shape.
C72
Native copper
Itauz Mine, Zhilandy, Satpayev, Karaganda, Kazakhstan
Native copper crystals that are twinned and arranged to look like a spear, with a small side crystal adding to the looks.
C73
Calcite
Campomorto Quarry, Pietra Massa Locality, Lazio, Italy
Something I’ve been on the lookout for quite some time. Still am for a bit larger one. Perfect sphere of calcite on some contrasting basalt matrix.
C74
Vanadinite
San Carlos, Manuel Benavides, Chihuahua, Mexico
Stacked crystals of vanadinite in an interesting form and color, ranging from yellow to darker red. Luster on this specimen is astonishing.
C75
Vivianite
Huanuni mine, Huanuni, Oruro, Bolivia
Something you would like to see every day, but sadly don’t. Combination of vivianite and the glorious mineral – baryte.
C76
Marcasite
Seilles, Andenne, Namur, Wallonia, Belgium
A group of crystals of lustrous marcasite on top of a matrix made out of siderite pseudomorph calcite crystals, with a hollow bottom.
C77
Adamite
Ojuela Mine, Mapimí Municipality, Durango, Mexico
A small group of adamite crystals with a subtle color on top of a dark limonite matrix in an interesting position. Overall a nice composition.
C78
Zunyite
Qalat Payeen, Bandar Abbas, Hormozgan, Iran
Perfectly placed crystal of zunyite on top of some crumbly and unstable matrix on which it had to be reattached od secured how it was initially placed.
C79
Calcite
Birdlings Flat, South Island, New Zealand
Fabulous locality, fabulous calcite ball on top of some matrix. Specimen ended up with me after a friend – Dominic Robertson put in some work and helped me get one of these.
C80
Mimetite
Dry Gill Mine, Caldbeck Fells, Cumbria, England, UK
Mimetite var campyllite specimen from the Dry Gill Mine. Combination of yellow/orange and black create a great combination and contrast.
C81
Malachite
Chessy Copper Mines, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, France
Sharp, but tiny, pseudomorph of malachite after cuprite. The surface of the crystals is interesting. Ex A. Sautier, P. Bleyzac.
Mineral Shelf D (Number 4)
Mineral Shelf E (Number 5)
Mineral Shelf F (Number 6)
More photos left to add to the subcollection/suite
70+ Specimens About to be photographed and added to this suite.
Soon!
Stay tuned for more amazing specimens.
Learn more about
Mineral Specimen Sizes
Collectors tend to collect mineral specimens in different sizes. Narrowing down to specific groups by mineral size can help a collector focus on a certain size, limiting his expenses and field of view.
Groups of mineral specimen sizes
In my opinion, for collectors with limited space for display, focusing and collecting like thumbnail sized and miniature sized specimens makes perfect sense. I am one of those collectors. Focusing on these sizes makes the mineral selection smaller, helps you save up space and focus better. But, it all comes to personal preferences. That is why we provide you a “guide” to mineral sizes. Wherever you look, these dimensions will be a bit off, but close enough.
Micromounts (MT): Specimens that require a microscope to enjoy their crystals. Usually under 10mm.
Thumbnail sized (TN): Usually described as any mineral that can fit into a perky box (box that is 1.25″ inch by 1.25″ inch, invented by Willard Perkins) – so from 2mm up to 3cm or 1/16″ to 1.25″
Miniature sized (MIN): Specimens larger than a thumbnail, from 3cm to 6cm or described as minerals that can fit into a 2″ square box.
Small cabinet sized (SMC): From 6cm to 10cm or 2-1/2″ to 4″
Large Cabinet sized (LGC): Larger than 10cm or 4″, up to 6″
Extra Large Cabinet sized (XLC): Larger than 15cm or 6″. Often reffered to as Museum size
Photographs used with permission from The Arkenstone – iRocks.com
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