Treasured Minerals by Russ Behnke - HTML preview

Treasured

Minerals

Clockwise from top left: Condor Agate, Argentina ; Amazonite with quartz, Colorado;

Amethyst on Calcite, Uruguay; Tourmaline, Afghanistan.

by Russ Behnke

Treasured

Minerals

by Russ Behnke

Introduction

I recently attended a local club meeting of mineral collectors where the discussion centered on

“Why collect?” and it seemed that there were as many reasons for collecting as there were collectors. One individual enjoyed the historic importance of minerals; another concentrated on

learning a mineral’s elemental components; and yet another was fascinated by their structures.

My own introduction to minerals was through my father, who one day brought home a book

with colored drawings of minerals, one of which was a multicolored tourmaline crystal. I was

amazed that such things could exist in nature, and I

wondered whether we might be able to find some

for ourselves. Forty years ago when I began my

search, the world was a very different place, and we

had access to many quarries in the state of

Connecticut. Gem-quality tourmaline crystals had

been found in several of the old mines. My father

and I paid a few visits to these quarries, and it was

not long before he uncovered the 1-inch-tall greenand-yellow specimen shown here. Seeing that crystal come out of the

earth is one of my most vivid memories, and it inspired me to find out

all I could about Connecticut’s minerals. My mother came with us from time to time, and she found the 0.75-inch

purple fluorite crystal on matrix from near the Durham and Wallingford town lines. I especially like this piece, as

most of the fluorites from the quarry are green, and this one is truly atypical. After learning what

I could in those early years of going to local mines, I went on to study geology at the

Colorado School of Mines and then became a collector and dealer.

Today, in 2008, the only place in Connecticut where such finds can be easily collected

is Green’s Farm, otherwise known as the Roxbury Garnet Mine, which is on the border between Roxbury and Southbury. A garnet in matrix 2.75 inches tall is shown

here. This specimen is from the collection of Frederick Augustus Genth (1820Dedication

Design: Alan Palermo

1893) and is typical of what could still be found in the mine. To me, its label

Copy Chief: Lynne Sewell

This book is dedicated to my parents, Walter A. Behnke and Doris L. Behnke.

“makes” this specimen.

Copyright ©2008 Maplegate Media Group

All rights reserved under International and PanAcknowledgements

American Copyright Conventions. No part of this

I am very taken with the beauty of minerals because their colors and forms

publication may be reproduced, stored in a

I thank the following people for helping to bring this

are incredible. I hope this book will serve as your introduction to the beauty

retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by

book about: Doris L. Behnke, Walter A. Behnke,

any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying,

of minerals. To me, not everything has to be perfect or absolutely the best. It

Lawrence H. Conklin, C. Melanie Duque,

recording or otherwise, without the prior written

is nice when that happens, and I do look for it, but I try to see things in conJoseph A. Freilich, Michael MacDonald,

permission of the copyright owner.

Stephen M. Neely, Alan Palermo, Steve Pober,

text. There is value in memories and history as well as in the mineral itself. I

Ken Thurston, Sharon Warner and Wendell Wilson

Published by:

hope my photos will inspire a few new collectors and please the old-timers, and

Maplegate Media Group, Inc.,

650 Danbury Road, Ridgefield, CT 06877 USA,

that is my ultimate goal. I begin with photos of my favorite specimens from the Northeast and head west and then

www.maplegatemedia.com

Photo Credits

on to Mexico, South America, and on to the rest of the world. These are the specimens I decided to make my own.

Library of Congress Control Number: 2008941032

All photos except those credited to Maplegate Media’s

I use no rules to guide me other than that I buy what I suspect will stand the test of time.

corporate photographer, Walter Sidas, were taken by the

ISBN 978-0-9817995-2-0

author.

Printed in China

ON THE COVER: gold on quartz, 4.5 inches tall, Placer County, California

Treasured Minerals 3

The Garnet from Russell,

Massachusetts

I was named after a great uncle who, in turn, was named for Russell Mountain—a place

his father loved. The mountain is in the small town of Russell, Massachusetts, and I feel

that I have a link to the area. I was surprised when I first read about the important find of

garnets in that town in 1885. George Kunz reported in his “Gems and Precious Stones”

that the garnets had brought the lofty sum of $1,000 at that time. It seems that two men,

Daniel Clark and F.S. Johnson, worked the small deposit and sold specimens to all the area

museums, including the American Museum of Natural History and the colleges of Yale

and Amherst. Like many collectors, Johnson kept the best for himself. Many years later,

Joel Sweet happened upon the collection in the family estate, and I was able to buy all the

remaining specimens, including this one, which I regard as the best single specimen from

Russell. The crystal is utterly sharp and smooth faced—truly like a textbook drawing in

its perfection. This rarely happens in nature, and I cannot think of any crystal of equal size

that is as sharp as this one. The crystal alone is 2 inches across, and it sits on a matrix of

feldspar. The specimen was shown in the September 1994 issue of Earth magazine and in

the garnet issue of Extra Lapis. Although it is a little illogical to think that the discoverers

of this deposit would have left behind anything of value, many people have hunted for

the locality. No one, to my knowledge, has ever found anything truly significant in the

general area. One of Daniel Clark’s nicest Russell garnet specimens is on display in the

museum in Pittsfield, and Russell garnets are in many private collections. I had the

crystals analyzed years ago, and they are almandine, an iron-bearing garnet, rather than

spessartine, which they are sometimes labeled as.

4 Treasured Minerals

Treasured Minerals 5

Two New England Amethysts

One winter day, this 6-inch-tall, pagoda-shaped amethyst was collected by Cliff Trebilcock

while he was wearing snowshoes! He was collecting at the famous Deer Hill near Stowe,

Maine. This specimen is regarded as the best amethyst ever found there. He made his big

discovery of this jewel of a specimen and many large flat plates of amethyst and struggled

through the snow to take them all home. I acquired this choicest piece from Cliff quite a

few years later in 1982, and the specimen has since been shown in the Mineralogical Record,

Volume 14, page 175, and in “The Mineralogy of Maine” (plate 17). It is among the most

photogenic specimens from Maine, and its unusual form and great color combine to make

it a singular specimen to me.

I have spent considerable time in the field looking for my own specimens. The choice one

shown below is the best I have uncovered. Robert Pagini and I were looking for crystallined pockets in the unfinished Route 11 road cut in Salem, Connecticut. We found one

crystalline vein, and while digging along it, we each found one of the amethyst crystals of

this specimen. It was immediately evident that the two amethyst crystals and the small

clear quartz crystal of an earlier generation

had been one specimen that had separated!

Bob had a stellar collecting day and went

home with several other amethysts in his

cache. So I had the good fortune to keep the

crystals together. The reconstructed piece

measures just under 3 inches tall; it may not be

a very significant amethyst to the rest of the

world, but it surely has significance to me and

to other collectors of Connecticut minerals

who share the dream. There is nothing quite

like prospecting for your specimens to get a

reality check on just how rare it is to find a

first-rate mineral! They are uncommon and

elusive, and that is a part of our fascination

with searching for our own specimens!

6 Treasured Minerals

Treasured Minerals 7

Amethysts from Rhode Island

Rhode Island is not generally known for its minerals but, like many East Coast states, it has

produced some good amethysts; a few of these are astoundingly good and very

different from those found in other states. Perhaps, most obviously, the amethysts are associated with a pure white milky quartz that almost looks like porcelain. When the amethyst is

deeply colored, the contrast is amazing and very pleasing. The two specimens shown here

and opposite were found in 1982 and were dug by Sal Avella and Fred Corcoran. I was luckily able to buy most of the best pieces from this early find. These two pieces are shown in the

Mineralogical Record in Volume 14. I also sold the specimen that went to the Smithsonian

Institution and appeared on the front cover of Mineralogical Record. The scepter shown here

is 2.75 inches tall and is one of the most beautiful I have

ever seen.

The specimen of white quartz with the single crystal of

deep amethyst measures 3.75 inches across, and in my

opinion, it is the most striking piece from the find.

Certainly, there were larger pieces, but I was taken by

the strength of the color contrast, which seemed

strongest in this piece.

It’s interesting that the site where the specimens were

dug is in someone’s front yard in a residential area of

Hopkinton. There are probably more specimens to be

found, but Sal and his friends have dug the locality for

one weekend a year for many years now, and they have

not found anything to equal their earliest finds.

Sometimes, a few large crystals are encountered, but

they pale in comparison.

8 Treasured Minerals

Treasured Minerals 9

Remarkable Calcite from New York

Regular mining at the White Rock Limestone Quarry near the now forsaken village of

Lewisburg, New York, ceased when a huge vug of rose and amethystine calcite crystals

opened high above the quarry floor; it was a rose-hued grotto! On that fall day in 1906,

perhaps the most important find of calcite ever made on the East Coast of the United

States was revealed.

The astonished miners had never seen anything like this plethora of vibrant crystals. Miss

Sterling, a mine owner, called in a state geologist, and it was soon decided that this

historic find should be relocated in its entirety to the State Museum in Albany.

A part of this tremendous find was reassembled in the museum; it was of great

public interest and drew visitors to the museum for many years. Museums regularly

“refresh” their displays, and at some point, the exhibit of the calcite grotto was disassembled and stored. Then, in 1989, museum curator James E. Campbell was offered a collection of more than 1,500 New York State specimens in exchange for the one magnificent calcite pictured here; to Mr. Campbell, the offer was too good to resist. To this day, very few

specimens from this find, generally referred to as the “Sterlingbush discovery,” have left

the museum.

A chemical analysis done at the time of the find suggested

that the extraordinary color of these crystals was caused by

the presence of neodymium. In 1910, Whitlock published his

“Calcites of New York” in which there are drawings of these

amazing calcites. One of the twinned crystals illustrated here

as number 5 closely resembles this marvelous specimen.

While the museum still has single crystals weighing up to

1,000 pounds, this specimen, which measures 13 inches

across, is the best collector-size crystal in the entire find. It is

in exceptionally fine condition, as it was collected with

unusual care; the crystal faces are as sharp and as flat as they

should be. The lilac color the crystal exhibits is rarely encountered anywhere in the world. To add further glory to the

specimen, the crystal is a doubly terminated and twinned floater with almost no point of

attachment. It is unlikely that more specimens will be recovered here, as the mine is now

a part of Fort Drum. The Sterlingbush find, while limited to this one pocket, was otherwise as important in its day as the Elmwood Tennnessee calcite discovery of modern

times. I regard this specimen as the best collector-size calcite from the USA’s East Coast.

10 Treasured Minerals

Treasured Minerals 11

Herkimer “Diamonds”

Herkimer County in New York State has long been noted for producing countless beautifully crystallized transparent quartz crystals. These are known as “Herkimer diamonds”

for their brilliant crystalline nature, but they are really quartz that often has great luster.

The 4.5-inch-tall specimen on the facing page is from the appropriately named “Ace of

Diamonds Mine” in Middleville, Herkimer County. Most of the quartz crystals from this

mine are colorless, but this specimen has an unusual smoky aspect. Although this piece

has been repaired as most similar groups have been, one of the local miners considers it

to be the nicest he has seen during his many years of collecting.

Other types of quartz are found in the area. The Treasure

Mountain Mine was operated for only a short time, but it

produced a few exceptional scepter quartz specimens,

some with calcite or dolomite. The 2.5-inch specimen

shown below is an exceptional black scepter on a

simple calcite. It is the nicest combination of the

two minerals that I have been able to

acquire from this area.

Also from the area but rarely seen are

inclusions of pyrite or marcasite in clear

quartz. These occur in several of the

mines. A 1-inch crystal collected by Ken Silvy is shown above.

I have other specimens from the Herkimer mines; I treasure

them, but these are my favorites. I have chosen to show

pieces that are more unusual than standard finds.

12 Treasured Minerals

Treasured Minerals 13

Fluorites from Illinois

Say “Hardin County” to any mineral collector, and he will think of the

great blue, yellow and purple fluorites from the now closed mines

there. Many collectors’ first mineral purchase was of a fluorite octahedron that had been cleaved by the local miners. This 2-inch polished yellow and purple octahedron with inclusions of a sparkling sulfide mineral may be exceptional, but it shows how the fascination with

minerals was often ignited.

The 4-inch example of deep blue fluorite with calcite is a neat example of how fine

the blues are; they are the world’s best. When this piece came out in 1993, I told everyone

that they would be great investments, and I think that has been proven to be sound advice.

I recently acquired this piece

from Donald Fisher, a now

retired geologist for the state of

New York.

All of these fluorites were found

in the Minerva Mine, which produced the most colorful and

wonderful specimens of the district—at least, in my opinion.

Slices were made of some of the

damaged fluorites. I looked for

years to find one with all three

colors, and this is the nicest

example I found. The section

shown is 4.5 inches long. I found it at a small gem and mineral show in Massachusetts,

suggesting that, like gold, treasure is where you find it.

14 Treasured Minerals

Treasured Minerals 15

Michigan Coppers

Michigan’s Upper Peninsula has produced many fine copper specimens. Some of the

forms observed are really beautiful, and I have chosen these two pieces as representative.

The 4-inch “Swan” (facing page) consists of a number of large copper crystals that come

together in a perfectly zoomorphic form. The specimen was in the collection of Benjamin

Shaub, a professor of mineralogy at Smith

College in Massachusetts. He lived from

1893 to 1993 and wrote many papers on

mineralogy, including articles on agates—a

passion that we shared. He had an impressive collection of minerals and agate and

agate-like minerals. To me, the “Swan” is a

pleasant reminder of a man who wrote his

last book at the age of 96.

The 1.25-inch-tall copper tree shown here

is from the Hancock Mine, Houghton

County, Michigan. Tree-like forms in

copper are actually fairly common, but this

one exhibits sharper crystals than most and

is in absolutely perfect shape.

16 Treasured Minerals

Treasured Minerals 17

Some American Chalcocites

I grew up 20 miles away from the Old Copper Mine in Bristol, Connecticut, so it was only

natural for me to visit it on one of my first outings. Nothing much remained to be found

even 40 years ago, but the mine was world famous for its great chalcocite crystals; they

can be seen in mineral museums around the world. Chalcocite is a black copper sulfide,

and copper-bearing minerals, with their wide range of colors and crystallized habits,

appeal to many collectors. The Bristol Mine was once the largest copper mine in the

United States, and it produced most of its

fine specimens between the 1830s and 1850s.

The group of crystals shown on the left

measures 2 inches across and is fairly typical

of some of the finer groups that were found.

The large specimen of iridescent chalcocite

on the next page is 6.25 inches across. It was

found by Casey Jones in August 1996 at the

Flambeau Mine in Ladysmith, Wisconsin.

This piece came from the last significant

crystal-lined cavity that was found in the

mine. This cavity was named the “Rocket

Pocket.”

At the Tucson Mineral Show following the

discovery of the Rocket Pocket, Dr. Steven

Neely and Dr. Edward David ganged up as a

team to buy Casey Jones’s best two available

pieces, and this is the one that Dr. David acquired on February 11, 1997. The Flambeau Mine

and the Bristol Mine are now a part of history, and neither is likely ever to produce another

significant specimen. The Flambeau Mine specimens often have a peculiar multicolored

iridescence that seems to be unique to them. Some are more bluish and others more golden, but in any case, they are very distinctive and are now very highly prized.

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Treasured Minerals 19

Agates of Kentucky and Tennessee

I have searched for fine agates for a long time, but I never

realized just how fine some American agates could be until

2007. I was shocked when I saw the 6.5 inch “Solar Storm”

agate from Greasy Cove in Tennessee. Ken Thurston, its previous owner, told me “The yellow with red banding is topof-the-line. Most Paint Rock agate comes in small pieces, is

completely fractured and has poor color and pattern. You

have one of the rare, large, highly colored pieces that is minimally fractured. Very few gem-quality agates of its size

were ever found.” The specimen was found about 10 years

ago, and it seems unlikely more will be found anytime soon.

The red spider-web design seems to be characteristic of the

limestone agates of Tennessee and Kentucky, but it is found

all too rarely to satisfy demand.

I was lucky to purchase several fine Kentucky agates this year. The 3.9 inch red and black half-nodule is from

Middlefork Creek, and the 6.5 inch mauve and yellow example is from Jones Branch. Because I have been searching for special Kentucky agates for some time, I was able to purchase these the day they were cut. Brightly colored specimens such as these are among America’s rarest agates.

20 Treasured Minerals

Treasured Minerals 21

The Amazonite Twin

This 7.25-inch-long specimen of amazonite, which is a green variety of microcline, was mined in

the 1970s by the late Ray Ziegler, who found it in Teller County, Colorado. The specimen was sold

by Ray’s agent, Dick Willis, to Bob Matuzas, who was known as a great field collector, especially

of the Patterson, New Jersey, trap-rock minerals. Bob probably found the best red stilbite ever at

Patterson, and he did many trades with the American Museum of Natural History back in the

days when they were actively trading.

I was very happy when Bob called and told me I could buy his collection. To my mind, this is the

best piece of the many fine pieces he had. Amazonite crystals with smoky quartz crystals are one

of the ultimate mineral combinations and one that every collector hears about and wants. This

example is even more wondrous, as it has a great Manebach twin. Twins of crystals are typically

considerably larger than single crystals, and that makes them stand out from a background of

smaller crystals. If you look at the largest crystal on the specimen, you will see that it exhibits a

“V” shape that marks the twin plane where the crystal faces are repeated as if viewed in a mirror.

Twinned crystals are typically much more highly valued than single crystals, and that is partly

because of their rarity and partly because of their size. Roy Smith, who collects amazonite, told

me that this is, in his opinion, one of the two best Manebach twins with quartz that he has ever

seen. The color on this amazonite specimen is exceptional—about as good as it ever gets. The

smoky quartzes are in fine condition and do not overwhelm the amazonite, as is often the case.

Collectors really want an amazonite with quartz and not quartz with amazonite. The preference