This Redesigned Exhibit Totally Rocks
Sorry, we had to
The American Museum of Natural History has announced that The Allison and Roberto Mignone Hall of Gems and Minerals finally opened to the public this past June, and its not to be missed.
The hall has been part of the museum since the 70s, and closed in 2017 to be redesigned as one of the New York icons 150th anniversary projects. It was originally supposed to open this past fall, then in February of 2021, but because of the pandemic, it was pushed back to this spring.
We got to witness the completely dazzling display in person, and it did not disappoint!
When you enter the Halls, you truly feel as if youve walked into the worlds jewelry box, said Allison Mignone, vice chair of the Museums campaign. And we definitely felt that way too.
The piece de resistance is right at the entrance a 9-foot-tall amethyst geode, sparkling incandescently in bright purple.
Its back-to-back with another similar but taller specimen this one clocking in a at12 feet. They are both from Uruguay, and are some of the worlds largest on display in public.
At a whopping 11,000 square feet, the new hall has been updated in both design and tech: there are interactive displays, touchable specimens, and media.
Here are some of the unbelievable main elements the new space includes:
- 3-foot-tall cranberry-colored elbaite tourmaline that is one of the largest intact mineral crystal clusters ever found:
Plus:
We think its New York Citys most sparkling exhibit yet!
All Mindatorg Supporters 2021/2022
Barbara Cureton IMO Forrest CuretonCarlson Pohl Family TrustCharles YoungDavid KroftDemetrius PohlDiane J. BeckmanDouglas MersonDr. Fabian SchmitzDuane B. JorgensenExcalibur Mineral Corp.Francis L. DudasFrank RuehlickeGeorge Frederick HugginsHazen FoundationIMO Charles Hyde WarrenIMO Laszlo Z. Valachi IMO: Nicholas J. TheisJacques BanchereauJames & Michaele FineganJerry ConeJim and Michaele FineganJohn C. LuckingJohn H. KashubaJohn KashubaJohn KashubaKeith ComptonLevi CrawfordMatt ZukowskiMichael SeedsNicholas Theis Jr., IMO Nicholas J. TheisNorman KingPH, dedicated to JULIA ROSE HUGGINSPaul HugginsPaul SiegelRobert M. HazenRobert W M WoodsideRockItSage CommunityRuggy HollowayRyan HamelSouthern California Friends of MineralogySteve MaslanskySteven MaslanskySussex Mineral & Lapidary SocietyTony Nikischerthe Micromounters of New England in memory of Dr. Mike Swanson
Rocks And Minerals: Everyday Uses
We use things made from rocks and minerals every day. It is estimated that every person in the United States will use more than three million pounds of rocks, minerals and metals during their lifetime.
- 900 pounds of lead
- 3,600 pounds of bauxite
- 30,000 pounds of ore
- 1,500,000 pounds of stone, sand, and gravel
- 6,500 pounds of cement
- 82,000 gallons of petroleum.
As each of us use the Earth’s natural resources on a human time scale, it is important to consider that mineral resources form on geologic timescales, and the vast difference between the two. The items in this case are just a few of the ways that we use rocks and minerals in our everyday lives.
EVERYDAY USES OF ROCKS AND MINERALS
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Local Mineral Museum Collections
American Museum of Natural History
The AMNH has the finest worldwide mineral and gem collection on display inthe New York City area. Their display once had systematic exhibits ofglass-topped cabinets but these were abandoned for the dramatic lightingand displays popular in the 1970s. Only a handful of mineral specimens fromNYC are currently on display. Notably an artinite specimen and a serpentinespecimen from Staten Island a muscovite crystal from 172nd Street and FortWashington Avenue and a large trapezohedral almandine crystal from the NYMCcollection labeled as from simply “New York, NY” that was found at West 166thStreet and Knowlton Place, near the current Columbia Presbyterian MedicalCenter. The museum is located at 79th Street on Central Park West in NYC.
New York State Museum
The NYSM has a large collection of minerals and they take seriously the taskof preserving NY State minerals, acquiring NY specimens when they becomeavailable. Their current displays show the breadth and beauty of NY minerals,well beyond the Herkimer Diamonds that novice collectors think of when NYminerals are discussed. The NYSM collection of New York City minerals issecond only to the NYMC collection. Fortunately the NYSM has greater flexibilityin adding or rotating the minerals on display and they plan a case of theminerals of NYC in the near future with the help of the AMNH and NYMC. TheNYSM is on Madison Avenue, south of the Empire State Plaza in Albany, NY.
The Staten Island Museum
Hillman Hall Of Minerals And Gems
Hillman Hall of Minerals and Gems invites you to appreciate the wild variety and beauty of minerals and gems. This exhibition artfully displays more than 1,300 specimens from all over the world that come in a large range of striking colors, fascinating forms, and dramatic shapes. Hillman Hall has gained an international reputation as one of the finest and most important mineral exhibitions in the country.
Admire the bright green, mossy like texture of a pyromorphite specimen or find out what causes the delicately hued colors in massive pieces of quartz. Learn about minerals that make up everything from table salt to diamond rings, or check out some tools that mineralogists use like microscopes and Geiger counters. Watch how some minerals are transformed in ultraviolet light or get lost in the Masterpiece Gallery taking in each unique specimen.
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Mining And Quarrying In New York City
Early settlers were hopeful of forming profitable mining enterprises in theNew World. Many mining attempts were made in the NY area, but the first viablemine was across the Hudson River in Arlington, New Jersey where the SchuylerCopper Mine was established ca. 1715. As with any early settlement, miningwas also required for the iron industry, building stone and lime productionused as plaster.
The NYCParks Department reports the first evidence of iron mining on Staten Islanddates to 1644 when Todt Hill was known by the Dutch as Yserberg, meaningIron Hill, because of the widely disseminated iron oxides goethite-hematitethat formed from the decomposition of the underlying serpentine. Large scalemining did not occur until around 1830 when modern blast furnaces initiatedthe growth in the cast iron industry. In 1832 Walter Dongan granted permissionto mine a portion of his property and mining continued in the area through1880s, when the Lake Superior iron mines started producing iron ore moreeconomically. An often cited statistic is that 300,000 tons of iron ore wasmined on Staten Island, though the exact source of the statistic is unknown.The iron was mined for iron foundries and also finely ground for use as thepigment red ochre. Iron mining centered around Todt Hill, Emerson Hill andGrymes Hill.
Richmond Iron Mining Company mine at Meier’s Corners on Staten Island from a company photograph taken in 1881.
Apophyllite- from Water Tunnel #3, Manhattan, NY 18×18 mm NYSM
Early Collectors And Collections
Several local mineral collectors stand out in the history of mineral collectingin New York City.
Benjamin B. Chamberlin
The largest private collection of New York City minerals was assembled byBenjamin B. Chamberlin who was the catalyst for the formationof the NYMC. B.B. Chamberlin was an engraver and created the engraving ofthe Subway Garnet that appeared in New York Academy of Sciences TransactionsVolume 5 for May 31, 1886 and Gems & Precious Stones of North America. After he served in the Civil War, he returned to New York City, wherehe considered it his life’s work to assemble a collection of mineral specimensfrom the city. In 1888 B.B. Chamberlin died and the NYMC arranged to purchasehis collection of approximately 1000 New York City minerals from his estatefor $1500, a large sum at the time when a common laborer’s wages averaged$6-$10 per week. Articles in the New York Times announced club appeals forfunds to purchase the collection. At the time, Chamberlin’s collection wasconsidered the most extensive collection of local minerals in existence andit became the core of the NYMC mineral collection that currently residesat the American Museum of Natural History.
George F. Kunz
Quartz from 176th Street and 10th Avenue, Manhattan, NY., ex. Kunz, 6 x 5 x 3 cm, NYSM #1354.
Gilman S. Stanton
James G. Manchester
Three xenotime crystals mounted in plaster, from 165th Street and Broadway Manhattan, NY. ex. Manchester 7-10 mm crystals. NYMC #651.
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The Building Stone Collection
The rock collection is home to the Building Stone Collection – containing around 16,000 specimens it is one of the largest documented collections of its kind in the UK. It is particularly useful for matching stone in historical buildings during conservation work.
The Building Stone Collection was founded when a survey of UK quarries was launched to find suitable stone to rebuild the Palace of Westminster following a massive fire in 1834.
Whats A Mineral Whats A Rock
Diamonds, graphite, quartz, table salt, and ice are all minerals, some of which you may already know a little about. Granite, marble, and sandstone are examples of rocks natural materials that are used as building or decorative stone. All are part of the solid earth, but how are rocks different from minerals and gems?
A geologist defines a mineral as a solid formed by natural processes that has a crystalline structure a unique arrangement of atoms and a definable chemical composition. Minerals are the basic geological building blocks of the solid earth they combine in different ways to make many types of rocks. If you say a rock is like a salad, each mineral would be a different ingredient of that salad. The ingredients can all be separated, but no matter how small you cut those ingredients, they are still carrots, tomatoes and lettuce. For example, granite is made up of the minerals quartz, biotite, feldspar, and maybe some other minor minerals.
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Online School Program For Grades 3
During this museum educator-led program, students will gain a better understanding of rocks and minerals, their uses, and how they are formed. Join us for an immersive exploration of some of Earths treasures in the Hall of Geology, Gems, and Minerals while using problem-solving skills to unlock the mysteries of these unique museum specimens.
In Photos: See Inside The American Museum Of Natural Historys New Hall Of Gems Dedicated To Natures Art
The hall has been completely renovated to showcase “nature’s art.”
Sarah Cascone, June 9, 2021
Four years ago, the Halls of Gems and Minerals at New Yorks American Museum of Natural History closed for long-overdue renovations. The cavelike space, deliberately designed to evoke the feeling of the mines where many of the specimens on display had been excavated, had been essentially untouched since 1976.
This week, it reopens to the public and features some 5,500 objects, from polished diamonds to rough-hewn sandstone.
I think its fair to say that no space, no gallery is quite as glittering as these new halls, museum president Ellen Futter said at the press preview.
The 11,000-square-foot halls have traditionally been one of the museums most beloved attractions, and the museum is predicting that it will be a major draw for tourists returning to the city.
Visitors in Minerals Hall at the American Museum of Natural History examine the Singing Stone, a 4.5 ton block of vibrant blue azurite and green malachite from Arizona that hums with changes in humidity. The climate control in the new hall prevents this from happening. Photo courtesy of the American Museum of Natural History.
There is something truly elemental and visceral about our connection to the minerals and materials of the earth on which we live, Futter said. Didnt we all collect rocks as children? And who among us doesnt appreciate a spectacular gem?
See more photos from the halls below.
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Why All Minerals Aren’t Everywhere
Although minerals are found all over the Earth, it is the geologic conditions rock type, chemical composition of magma, pressure, temperature, and the presence of fluids that determine which specific group of minerals will be found in a particular geographic region. A mountain range covering a large geographic area and consisting mainly of granite will generally have a different set of minerals compared to a mountain range comprised mostly of limestone or shale.
Metallic mineral resources such as gold, copper, iron, and aluminum, and non-metallic mineral resources like gravel, building stone, sand, gypsum, and salt are invaluable to our everyday life. Todays technology relies heavily on extremely rare metals such as tantalum, beryllium, and lithium, all of which are extracted from rocks and minerals. Because we use so many minerals as resources to create various aspects of human civilization, knowing where to find certain minerals is extremely important. Knowing where to look begins with a solid understanding of minerals, rocks, and Earths geologic history.
Gems & Minerals: Facets Vs Faces
So how are gems different from minerals? As a mineral grows it sometimes develops natural flat sides or faces if there is space to grow without interference from other minerals. Crystals may form a variety of different geometric shapes, such as cubes, needles, or prisms. The shape a crystal grows into depends on the crystals atomic structure as well as the temperature and pressure under which it forms. Mineral crystals valued for their qualities of color, clarity, beauty, durability, and rarity may be suitable for fashioning into gemstones ready to be set into jewelry. Gems have facets, which are the sides or edges that have been cut, shaped and polished by a gem cutter .
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Rocks And Minerals And Fossils
Entrance to all is at no charge. A fantastic musem both as a bulding and for its contents. Good displays, facilities are first class, good shops,good cafes, well signposted displays and sections. But…..the whale in the main hall is an absolute disappointment – it is hung up far too high and is spoilt by the tacky info booth beneath it. Diplodocus was far better and should not have been removed a curators whim that was not well thought out at all. The statue of Charles Darwin is too prominent and should really have a statue of Alfred Russel Wallace next to him. Wallavce was the first to propose the theory of Natural Selection but in essence Darwin and his mates plagiarised Wallace..
Introduction To The Minerals Of New York City
The landscape of New York City was arguably the most exposed and excavatedarea in the U.S., possibly only matched by that of Philadelphia. Bedrockwas exposed for basement excavations of buildings to 30 m deep, cut-and-covertrenches passing through bedrock for subway lines, and the underground railroad,sewer, water and steam tunnels that crisscross the city. Just one example,the 1903-1913 excavation for the New York Central railroad yards under whatis now Park Avenue north of Grand Central Station produced 3 million cubicyards of excavated rock. During these projects local residents interestedin minerals have managed to make many mineral discoveries. Oftentimes theworkers themselves were the ones that set aside a unique mineral occurrence.
Because NYC bedrock has been so thoroughly exposed, a surprising number ofminerals have been found here. The current list of the minerals from NewYork City include 129 valid mineral species. If NYC were a single localitythis number of mineral species would be impressive. But there are six diversegeologic environments found within city boundaries.
The Sanitary & Topographical Map of the City and Island of New York illustrating the topography, rivers, highlands with the street grid superimposed. This map is still used by city engineers to research surface geology that is expected when excavating for new building foundations, subways and utility excavations.
Subway construction in 1901 underneath Broadway at 155th Street in Manhattan.
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Cullen Hall Of Gems And Minerals
Permanent CollectionGet Tickets
From a huge amethyst weighing more than 850 lbs to a crystallized gold cluster that is one of the most highly coveted objects in the mineral kingdom, the spectacular specimens on display here are true masterpieces the Rembrandts and Picassos of the natural world.
Discover more than 450 beautifully crystallized mineral specimens, including some of the worlds most rare and beautiful examples. Examine these dazzling treasures in detail from all angles through walk-around display cases illuminated by fiberoptic lighting to provide optimum viewing.
Curator: Joel A. Bartsch
Native Texan and longtime Houstonian, Joel Bartsch was first hired as a security guard at the Houston Museum of Natural Science in 1984, and was appointed President & CEO of the Museum in 2004. His previous years of service at the Museum included his position as Curator of the Cullen.
Also curates the following:
Hailing from an island of gemstones,Siren of Serendipis one of the worlds largest blue sapphires. This magnificent and unparalleled gemstone
