WAUG 02


	Sodalite. Ilimaussaq massif, Greenland. 12" x 8.5" (30 x 21 cm). Large mass of very coarse-grained sodalite showing prominent zoned fluorescence. LW.

Greenland sodalite specimens

Mark Cole of Miami, Florida, recently donated five outstanding specimens of Greenland sodalite and tugtupite to the Warren Museum. The most remarkable of these is a large, coarse-grained mass of sodalite (photo at right) that exhibits bright, strongly color-zoned orange-yellow fluorescence. Equally remarkable is the strong tenebrescence of this specimen, which in daylight changes color from pale green to deep purple as the specimen is exposed to shortwave ultraviolet light. Subsequent exposure to sunlight reverses the process, and the coloration-bleaching cycles can be repeated indefinitely. Another sodalite specimen from this lot fluoresces equally brightly but shows little or no tenebrescence. (Tugtupite, too, shows tenebrescence in some specimens, but not nearly to the same extent as the best of the sodalites.)

Mark has been experimenting with the tenebrescence of the Greenland sodalites and has posted some memorable photos of them on his web site. The color of fluorescence changes from bright golden yellow to deep ruddy orange as the sodalite changes from its normal (bleached) to fully tenebresced states. Here is the link: http://www.minershop.com

Horn Silver mine sphalerites

In March the museum received a large shipment of fluorescent sphalerite from the Horn Silver mine near the old mining town of Frisco, Utah. The donors are Ed Ginouves and Ethan Bunker, both of Cedar City, Utah. Ed and Ethan had donated several prize specimens to the Warren Museum before, in time for the museum dedication in October 1999, but this time they outdid themselves by sending 350 pounds of their best specimens for a permanent display.

The multicolored fluorescence of this material is unparalleled by that from any other locality and is quite varied from one specimen to another. The solution-collapse breccias from the Horn Silver mine are collector favorites because the mineralized rock fragments fluoresce in so many different colors—orange, pale green, blue, pink, white—but solid masses of orange-fluorescent sphalerite have also been found in quantity. The Horn Silver sphalerite case will be the first of the museum's "mass displays," where numerous specimens are piled one atop another rather than being arranged in neat rows on shelves. A preview of this case was on public view at the New Jersey Earth Science Association show in Franklin, New Jersey, during the last weekend in April.

Nanasivik mine sphalerite


	Sphalerite. Ocean View East pit, Nanasivik mine, Baffin Island, Nunavut, Canada. 14" x 7" (36 x 18 cm). Abundant, fine-grained, yellow-fluorescent sphalerite in a nonfluorescent matrix of pyrite, galena, and dolomite. The sphalerite in this specimen, despite its evident abundance, is inconspicuous in daylight. LW.

A large and texturally fascinating specimen of fluorescent sphalerite from the Nanasivik mine, Baffin Island, Canada, was recently donated to the museum by mine geologist Gary Dyck. Fluorescent sphalerite had been found at this locality before, but the new specimens are far brighter than their predecessors and are easily comparable in overall attractiveness to sphalerite from such other well-known localities as Bisbee and Tsumeb. This specimen adds a locality not heretofore represented in the museum collection and may convince us to install a display of fluorescent sphalerite from worldwide localities in our new display room, presently under construction.

Greenland display

New to the museum this April is an outstanding exhibit of the fluorescent minerals of Greenland. This exhibit, on loan from Bill McMullen of Sudbury, Massachusetts, already is a visitor favorite among novices and experts alike, and no wonder, for it contains large specimens of brilliant orange sodalite, deep red tugtupite, and white sorensenite, among other species.

Experienced collectors will appreciate Bill's eye for detail, for he has included several varieties of tugtupite and sodalite from different localities in the same general region, and he explains the charming legend behind the name of Tugtup Agtakorfia, the type locality for tugtupite.

Hesselbacher Room construction

Early this year construction began on the new display room in the Warren Museum. This room measures roughly 25 x 16 ft and will contain displays on polarized fluorescence, triboluminescence, and phosphorescence, as well as the fluorescent crystal collection of George E. Hesselbacher II, who provided the funds for opening this new exhibit area. A large display of sphalerite specimens from the Horn Silver mine in Utah (see above) will also be on view. As of this writing the new cabinets are about half complete, and the wiring for a new alarm system has been installed.

Hesselbacher collection received and displayed

In late March three of the museum staff traveled to Alexandria, Virginia, to select specimens for permanent display from the collection of the late George E. Hesselbacher, Jr. Several years ago Mr. Hesselbacher offered to donate his collection of fluorescent crystals to the museum and to underwrite the cost of expanding our displays into a fourth room, as noted above. Twelve flats of crystal specimens were chosen for the new displays and are now being catalogued into the museum collection. Several dozen of these specimens were placed on public view during the April 27-28 New Jersey Earth Science Association show in Franklin, New Jersey.


	Benitoite. Gem mine, San Benito County, California. 6.5" x 4" (16 x 10 cm). Large (1.5-2.5 cm), sharply formed, undamaged crystals of benitoite embedded in natrolite on serpentinite matrix. SW.

Mr. Hesselbacher had a practiced eye and gradually built an impressively eclectic collection of fluorescent crystals. Among his most notable specimens are a magnificent plate of large benitoite crystals (pictured at left) and an exceptionally large crystal of ruby corundum from the well-known Mysore, India locality. As specimens from this collection are catalogued they will also be photographed, so please check the Specimen Photos page from time to time for new entries.

Fluorescent tapletop

In April the museum received on loan a tabletop of brecciated marble that shows a striking pattern of fluorescence under both longwave and shortwave ultraviolet light. The tabletop belongs to John "Mac" Davis, president of the Tidewater Gem and Mineral Society. We hope shortly to post a photograph of this item and place it on display with other lapidary items (cabochons, carvings, obelisks, spheres, etc.) that fluoresce. The lapidary display, including the new tabletop, will likely be expanded as our new exhibit area is completed.


	Willemite (green), Calcite (red). Balmat, New York. 6" x 5" (15 x 12 cm). The willemite is in microscopic grains abundantly distributed through oxidized matrix rock, with coarse-grained calcite. SW.

Balmat, New York willemite and calcite

Shown at right is one of two new specimens of fluorescent willemite and calcite from the Balmat area, donated by Greg Lesinski of Buffalo, New York, during the New Jersey Earth Science Association mineral show in April. These are welcome additions, for none of our previous willemite specimens from this area contain calcite, and the fluorescent red-and-green combination is far more attractive than the green of the willemite alone. The piece shown will shortly be added to the Willemite case of the museum, and its twin will be entered in the reference collection.

UPDATE: AUGUST 9, 2002