My fossil and mineral collection is growing.
Mostly I add small pieces to it, like the tiny coiled trilobites in the photo above (just under the mosasaur tooth), or the $15 sand dollar (which is actually the fossilised remains of a sea urchin, even though it looks like a starfish).
A recent addition though is this giant hunk of amethyst, which I found irresistible. My friend Tom had it at his stall in the Rocks Markets, and offered me a price on it that I couldn’t refuse (please don’t ask).
I’d never seen a piece of raw amethyst with such a deep purple colour before! What makes this one particularly special though is that it was cut from three intersecting stalactites – you can see their cores on the top of the specimen. I love how two of them have fused together to form a heart shape.
It comes from Artigas, Uruguay…
It’s hard to capture just how lovely this is in a photo – under the right lights, purple fire seems to glow from within the rock. My young friends Tom and Grace are convinced it’s a dragonstone! Because amethyst is a form of quartz, it’s translucent…
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Another new piece is this tiny estaingia bilobata trilobite, my first Australian fossil and the oldest piece I own. It comes from Kangaroo Island and it’s a lower Cambrian fossil (520 million years old). Australian trilobites are very rare and expensive compared to those from Morocco, so it’s a huge treat to have this one in my collection. It’s only 15mm long – not nearly as big as the photo below…
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Finally, an early Christmas present from my mum – she saw me lusting over this magnificent specimen and took pity on me. It’s a large piece from Peru, covered in an unusual combination of pyrite (in cube and octahedron form) and points of white quartz. The dark shiny bits are galena, a natural mineral form of lead…
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All these pieces were bought from Tom at the Living Fossil Gallery (Mosman and the Rocks Market). When we last spoke, he asked me if I’d bake him some sourdough – I was, of course, more than happy to do so. Last Friday, he zoomed over on his Harley to pick up a couple of loaves, and gave me these tiny fossilised nautiluses as a gift. Given they’re 160 million years old, I think I got the better end of the deal!
Fig Jam and Lime Cordial 
Your treasures are lovely, Celia – but you must get sick of dusting!
A treasure trove indeed Celia
Now I know it’s all about the amethyst but I love that sand dollar. I collected many of these out of the lagoon in Vanuatu but they were all small (an not fossilised) – not like that beauty! Just did a quick Google and found out that they are called Sea Cookies or Snapper Biscuits in NZ. cheers xxx
I love the pyrite, quartz, galena – that’s stunning
All special and beautiful pieces but I’m in awe of the gift from your mum. It’s stunning!
That amethyst is amazing, as is the piece from your mother. What a fine collection Celia.
It is such a lovely collection. Are you sensitive to the energy emitting from it esp the crystals?
Not at all. :)
My daughter loved rocks and fossils. She would go crazy at a rock market! This summer we drove 2.5 hrs (each way) to an area known to be high in minerals, there are several mines, just to go rock collecting. There is a small field, next to a small rock store, where they dump mine tailings where you go and pick through the rocks and pay by weight. They call it the rock farm. She found several nice pieces and a few lovely geodes. I have to admit it was fun.
A marvelous collection of minerals and fossils. The amathyst is a beautiful purple color. You have some interesting fossils as well. Can’t beat a sourdough-fossil trade! ☺
You have a beautiful collection going, loved reading this!
Hey Celia, They sure look lovely. I especially love the one your mum bought you for Christmas. It is such a nice thing for a mother to do – see her daughter loves something then buy it for her. I treasure a plate my mum bought me when I was about 12 years old. She saw me looking at it lovingly and stroking it. Later she went back and bought if for me. I still have it.
Your delight in small things is a joy Celia. Never lose that wonder.
What a beautiful collection. I do love natural beauty of this nature. There is something near magical about the colours, patterns and textures.
Thanks for sharing.
Eli