Customer Reviews

Field Collecting Gemstones and Minerals

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This is the third edition; the first in 1961 was titled Gemstones and Minerals: How and Where to Find Them, the second in 1970 was titled Prospecting for Gemstones and Minerals, and this third edition is perhaps the most appropriately titled; all editions are very similar with minor changes, and all are excellent.

This clearly written how-to book is written for the layman, with very descriptive text accompanied by diagrams and pictures. Not a guide to localities, nor a descriptive mineralogy (see the author's excellent mineralogy text for that); this tells HOW to collect minerals. Chapters cover field trips, tools and how to use them, rock classes and how to recognize them, how mineral deposits form, field features of mineral deposits (pegmatites, sulfide veins, basalt and diabase sills, alpine vugs, etc.), collecting practices, preparation of specimens (cleaning, trimming, and preservation), storage and exhibit (labelling, cataloging, assembling and arrangement), with useful appendices, bibliography, and index.

I bought an edition years ago and soon found it very useful, particularly the section on Tools and How to Use Them. For field collecting, this book shows you how. -DMM

There isn't one single aspect of field collecting and processing minerals that Mr. Sinkankas has neglected in this classic manual. It has inspired generations of enthusiasts, myself included. My favorite feature remains the clear illustrations, including cross-sections of his favorite vug pockets, proper placement of gads, prospecting with ultraviolet light, and the copious photographs of geomorphological indicators. For the absolute beginner and experienced hand alike, this is heady stuff. It's practically a mini-geology course in a book. Mr. Sinkankas' style couldn't be easier to read. If you ever run across his classic Mineralogy, snag it. It'll have you hooked for life.

This book was recommended by a friend who is a much more experienced rockhound than myself. I really have got to thank him. Mister Sinkankas' book is a veritable how to of rockhounding collecting covering everything from prospecting, collecting, specimen prep and selling specimens. All of this and in easy to understand, well explained and illustrated layman's terms. I wish I had found this book years ago. I highly recommend it. My only critsism is that it was published more than twenty years ago and could stand some updates such as web addresses for government and educational resources, buying and selling online etc... But really that is not something to stop one benifiting from the knowledge contained in this book. If you are thinking of prospecting for minerals as a collector, you need this book.

An excellent book, very informative and an aid to any serious rockhound. I highly recommend it.