Mastodawn

Elizabeth V Sep 19, 2023

Having a difficult time deciding today for #MinCup23. It’s my favorite teal copper mineral vs my favorite goth girly, Vivian. I’ll probably go with dioptase because of my attachment to my little dioptase friend I found in my car, but I won’t be mad no matter which wins. https://www.mineralcup.org/2023/campaigns/campaigns/round-2-match-3

Vote in Round 2 Match 3 — Mineral Cup

It’s the emerald Queen of the Desert versus the dramatic Lady of Darkness. Both are gorgeous, but just one is continuing to Round 3. Who will be gone with the wind?

Mineral Cup

Elizabeth V Sep 18, 2023

Everyone likes showing photos of clear quartz, but I love #quartz because it can be purple (and other colors)! Just look at this amethyst! Stibnite is cool looking, but it isn’t this lovely color. #MinCup23 https://www.mineralcup.org/2023/campaigns/campaigns/round-2-match-2

Photos from Mindat.org

Vote in Round 2 Match 2 — Mineral Cup

En garde! Prismatic Quartz and bladed Stibnite are poised for their duel. Can piezoelectric quartz burn through the fire retardant of Stibnite’s antimony? Or will eternal kohl leave the archetypical rock crystal shocked?

Mineral Cup

Elizabeth V Sep 17, 2023

Kaolinite gets my vote today for #MinCup23. It’s used to make paper, ceramics, paint, and lots of other things. In some places in the US you can go into a convenience store and buy a bag to help with tummy troubles. Go team anti-diarrheal!

Providence Canyon in Lumpkin, GA (USA) was formed by bad farming practices in the 1800s. It’s 150 feet deep and one of the exposed formations contains lenses of kaolin. It was one of my favorite geology field trips!

Elizabeth V Sep 16, 2023

Easy vote for me today. My choice is the absolutely gorgeous pink #rhodochrosite which I fell in love with as soon as I saw samples from the Sweet Home Mine in Colorado. #MinCup23 https://www.mineralcup.org/2023/campaigns/round-1-match-16

Photo from Mindat.org

Round 1 Match 16 — Mineral Cup

It’s an epic song battle for the final match in Round 1: "I'm a Rhodochrosite girl in a Rhodochrosite world" vs "It's not easy being green (Lizardite)". Even if the rose-tinted glasses make the grass look greener, you can only pick one! Which will it be?

Mineral Cup

Elizabeth V Sep 15, 2023

Tough choice today for #MinCup23 Both are gorgeous and no matter which one wins, it’s a blue mineral! My choice for today is trusty index mineral #kyanite which always gives me a clue to how a rock was formed. And it has different hardness depending on which direction you scratch it (insert your own naughty joke about hardness here). https://www.mineralcup.org/2023/campaigns/round-1-match-15

Photo found on Mindat.org so check out more photos there

Round 1 Match 15 — Mineral Cup

The battle of the metamorphic blues: newbie Sapphirine is challenging old-timer Kyanite. They may (sometimes) be found together, but you can only choose one! Which will it be?

Mineral Cup

Elizabeth V Sep 14, 2023

I’m going with #Neptunite for today’s #MinCup23 matchup. It has beautiful crystals, is friends with Benitoite, and it’s named after the Roman god of the sea because of its close association with aegerine (named after the Norse god of the sea) at its type locality.

Photo from Mindat and by Fabre Minerals (www.fabreminerals.com)

Elizabeth V Sep 5, 2023

I’m choosing #dioptase for today’s #MinCup23 match. I just love its pretty blue-green color and it gets bonus points for being a copper mineral.

I also found a piece in my car once. Who knows where it came from or who left it, but that little chunk of dioptase has become one of my favorite minerals to display.