Thomas Grant's Photo Gallery

Y43-LDYAgate (Var: Crazy Lace Agate) SiO₂

Sierra Santa Lucia, Ejido Benito Juarez, Buenaventura Municipality, Chihuahua, Mexico

Dimensions: 55 mm x 22 mm x 30 mm
Field of View: 55 mm
Weight: 29.9 g

Crazy lace agate specimen from Sierra Santa Lucia, Ejido Benito Juarez, Buenaventura Municipality, Chihuahua, Mexico.

It is predominantly bluish-grey with well defined markings and contains some tiny stones in the crevices. One side has reddish/brown surface staining - possibly iron oxide?

0KA-13LMalachite Cu₂(CO₃)(OH)₂

Sepon Mine, Vilabouly District, Savannakhet Province, Laos

Dimensions: 80 mm x 55 mm x 35 mm
Field of View: 70 mm
Largest Crystal Size: 10 mm
Weight: 125.4 g

A large aesthetic sample of botryoidal malachite from Sepon Mine, Laos.

TT7-8QMQuartz SiO₂ , Tourmaline AD₃G₆ (T₆O₁₈)(BO₃)₃X₃Z

Minas Gerais, Brazil

Dimensions: 85 mm x 48 mm x 70 mm
Field of View: 70 mm
Largest Crystal Size: 50 mm
Weight: 282.4 g

A cluster of quartz crystals with embedded black tourmaline, from an unspecified site in Minas Gerais, Brazil, The quartz is translucent, with some of the crystals being quite gemmy. There are eight distinct tourmaline crystals with a number of smaller specks - the longest is 50mm and the widest has a diameter of 12mm.

A78-NR6Gypsum CaSO₄·2H₂O

Lubin Główny shafts, Lubin, Lubin County, Lower Silesian Voivodeship, Poland

Dimensions: 50 mm x 80 mm x 50 mm
Field of View: 50 mm
Largest Crystal Size: 15 mm
Weight: 172 g

A beautiful and complex cluster of gypsum crystals, unofficially referred to as a 'sandwich'. The specimen is a multi-layered structure with potentially hundreds of clear to brown needle-like crystals between layers of crystalline gypsum (the longest is 15mm). The effect of the sparking crystals in light is quite eye-catching.

73C-T29Chalcedony (Var: Blue Chalcedony) SiO₂

Ngabu, Chikwawa, Southern Region, Malawi

Dimensions: 56 mm x 43 mm x 18 mm
Field of View: 33 mm
Weight: 29.6 g

A small piece of blue chalcedony from Malawi - though the colour appears greyish-blue. The chalcedony displays as mass of tiny botryoidal crystals, as can be more clearly seen in the photographs, along the edges of the specimen.

Q69-DF9Talc Mg₃Si₄O₁₀(OH)₂

Pietranera, Rovegno, Genoa, Liguria, Italy

Dimensions: 90 mm x 70 mm x 50 mm
Field of View: 30 mm
Largest Crystal Size: 12 mm
Weight: 330 g

Light green crystals of globular talc with many aesthetic clusters of crystals. The crystals sit on darker green massive talc, with the whole specimen feeling waxy or soapy to the touch.

A white patch on the talc – 30x20 mm – is unidentified, possibly calcite, though not listed for this site.

YTF-LVYSepiolite Mg₄(Si₆O₁₅)(OH)₂·6H₂O

Victoria Mining Group, San Blas-Canillejas, Madrid, Community of Madrid, Spain

Dimensions: 91 mm x 62 mm x 47 mm
Field of View: 60 mm
Weight: 95.5 g

Good representative specimen of very light, white-coloured microcrystalline Sepiolite.

Self-collected by original owner Iván Blanco during a visit to the mines in October 2003.

R7X-2YFMicrocline K(AlSi₃O₈)

Kolsva, Köping, Västmanland County, Sweden

Dimensions: 34 mm x 28 mm x 18 mm
Field of View: 42.0 mm
Weight: 19 g

A small specimen of salmon-pink coloured Microcline from Kolsva, Köping, Västmanland County, Sweden.

D1F-V8GSmithsonite ZnCO₃

Sheshodonnell East Mine, Carran, The Burren, Clare County, Munster, Ireland

Dimensions: 28 mm x 28 mm x 12 mm
Field of View: 33.0 mm
Weight: 17 g

Yellow botryoidal cadmium-rich smithsonite from a classic Irish locality.

6JF-NE0Sugilite KNa₂Fe³⁺₂Li₃[Si₁₂O₃₀]

Wessels Mine, Joe Morolong Local Municipality, John Taolo Gaetsewe District Municipality, Northern Cape, South Africa

Dimensions: 39 mm x 31 mm x 28 mm
Field of View: 45.0 mm
Weight: 26.9 g

A specimen of pale purple Sugilite microcrystals, rich around the matrix, with excellent colour in patches.