Best of the 2013 Tucson Gem & Mineral Show

I’m back from my annual trek to the always amazing Annual Tucson Gem & Mineral Show. To me, the Tucson show is more like the Disneyland of gems and fossils. I absolutely love it!

As usual, there were amazing geodes of every shape, color and size.

As you may know, geodes are ancient works of natural art, created over hundreds of thousands of years, as mineral-rich water in caves and river beds trickle into a rock’s porous surface. Tiny crystals are left behind as the water evaporates. Each crystal formation takes its colors from the iron, magnesium, sulfur, or other minerals in the water.

Once unearthed, opened, cleaned, and cut into interesting shapes and polished, these geodes are eye-popping! The giant pod-shaped amethyst geode above weighed over 1000 pounds. It was cut with a water saw to a 3” thickness so light could pass through the crystals. It is well over 3 ½ feet tall. What a knock out!

The two long cylindrical shaped geodes in the picture are very similar to the two I have on either side of my showroom door. Yes, those came from a mine in Brazil, and I picked up at the Tucson Gem Show years ago. I still get comments on them every day – and don’t ever get tired of looking at them.

Although I brought back a few fantastic geodes as special orders for customers, I couldn’t resist bringing back other new natural objects for my showroom. I hope you’ll come check them out!