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What to Tell a Newcomer to the World of Micromineralogy
You are here: MineralCollecting.org >> Posted Articles >> Article 22

by Jack Nelson, Poolesville, Maryland. (301) 972-8504.
nelsonja@erols.com
This article appeared in the January 1999 issue of the Mineral Mite, the newsletter of the Micromounters of the National Capital Area in Washington, D. C.

WHAT TO TELL A NEWCOMER TO THE WORLD OF MICROMINERALOGY.

To do justice to your newly discovered world of microminerals, you should have access to a stereo microscope with magnification in the range of 10X to 20X, if it has a single magnification, or from 5X to 50X or 80X or so if it has multiple or zoom magnification. There are some "beginner" stereo microscopes on the market which are quite good and relatively inexpensive. Edmunds Scientific has a beginner's scope for around $280 or perhaps you could pick up a used one for a little less. Of the 4,000 or so mineral species, probably well over 3000 crystalize only in a "micro" form so we micromounters can enjoy the exquisite beauty of form and color and variety of over 75% of the world's minerals. Start building a mineral reference library by buying some good mineral books and subscribing to some mineral magazines. Join a micromounter's club if one is available near you or, if not then a regular gem & mineral club that might have a micromineral section or some members who are interested in this fascinating field. One such club is The Micromineralogists of the National Capital Area in the Washington, D. C. area. Nearly half of their memberships are out of the area or in other countries. Like most mineral clubs, they have a very nice newsletter called "The Mineral Mite" which is issued 10 times a year and which has a wealth of information of value to micromineral collectors and micromounters as well as to other mineral collectors. You can gain a lot of micromounting knowledge from the Mineral Mite and there are a number of other fine micromineral clubs that publish good newsletters. The actual process of mounting micromineral specimens can be challenging but is most assuredly very rewarding. (Like mounting a single crystal as small as 0.1 millimeter on top of an animal whisker or porcupine quill for example).

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