Fabre Minerals / Fine Minerals / Munich 2005

Munich 2005

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Munich 2005 is now over and, as has been the case for years, it had a large number of dealers, minerals on offer and visitors. From all four corners of the world dealers brought the rarest and best that could be found in their countries, and then there were all the collectors who came hoping to find their dream specimen on one of the stands - at a good price too, of course! This really is a fiesta for the senses and nobody that really likes minerals should miss the chance to attend the show at least once and see the huge number of 'rocks'.

This year the weather was also great, temperatures were pleasant, the days sunny, and the overall combination of fine weather with the great feel of the show made for a wonderful time. We think that everyone found this to be a good year, better than the last few, and that, for better or worse, both dealers and collectors ended up well pleased.

One thing we cannot fail to comment on was something we heard from most visitors: that the prices on too many stands were far too high and out of reach for normal people. Exceptional things are always very expensive (that is why they are exceptional) and minerals are no exception to this rule, but we feel that in the case of minerals that are not exceptional, just good, the prices should have only four figures, not five or six. These high prices cause dismay and dishearten many collectors who, and we must not forget this, are the basis of this little world. We had many conversations on this issue with many dealers and collectors during Munich, and everyone had their own opinion but we feel that in general people had the impression that it makes sense for everyone that we work together to hold prices down, especially for specimens that are just good, not exceptional.

As we said, the weather was really good. On Tuesday, 25 October, one could walk about in light clothes down any of the streets of the villages near the show. The trees still had their leaves on, although these were changing color, so it was nothing like the cold, gray days we have had other years. The last photo shows me on the phone - there is never a moment of peace for Fabre Minerals, not even before the show starts!

The first two photos show the start of the show, with everything to come once one has entered the impressively large show. In the lower left photo you can see Joan Viñals, from the University of Barcelona in front of our stand. Joan published the new mineral species Cobaltarthurite, and from time to time he does chemical composition analysis for us on specimens where we are not sure quiet what they are. On the right you can see one of the many talks that go on in parallel with the show, and that make it even more interesting for visitors.

This was our stand and we hope it was attractive. On the right you can see Joaquím Callén, the indefatigable photographer from the Grupo Mineralógico Catalán (G.M.C.), who was taking photos of some of the new material we had at the show.

Among the many things that went on there were musical concerts and a wide variety of expositions, such as dinosaurs. This one seems to be thinking about the immensity of the cosmos, while chewing on a leaf that someone has put in its mouth.

Moving on to minerals, which are of greatest interest, here are our thoughts on what was new at the show in 2005.

For us the most outstanding new find was the new twinned Colemanites that were very brilliant and a very unusual brown color. They were found at the Mustafakemalpascha mine, Anatolia, Turkey. Very beautiful and very different from the ones we have seen before.

While not a true novelty, as they were first seen at this year's Denver show, the Babingtonites (we have had them analyzed and can confirm that it is this species, not Manganbabingtonite) from Hongxi, Meigu, Sichuan, China impressed us for their size, quality and esthetics. They were associated with Prehnite and Quartz, and in a few cases Calcite.

Another notable find was made at the Mina San José, Oruro, Bolivia with exceptional Andorites, Franckeites, Joséites..... Another good piece of news from South America is that in the Mina La Marina, Colombia, where they recently found some neat pink Fluorapatites, they have also found blue-green, very elegant Euclases. In Brazil the recent find of Magnesite-Dolomite from Serra das Éguas, Brumado produced some excellent combinations.

In Europe we noted the rediscovery of Devillines at Spania Dolina (ex-Herregrund), Slovakia.

From Pakistan-Afghanistan there was not must to report given the terrible consequences of the recent earthquake that hit the region.

From China, apart from the Babingtonites, there were good specimens of Plumbogummite, which were better than any previous specimens of this mineral and that once again confirmed this country to be a major source of specimens. They showed a large variety of forms and in some cases really were of high quality. However, please be warned about the various forms of fakery coming from China. Sadly these seem to be growing. We can only hope that over time the Chinese dealers learn the damage that this does to them and between them manage to put some order in place.

From India there were the new Thomsonites that are of high quality and esthetics, as is often the case with Zeolites from there. In Jalgaon they have found new Stilbites on stalactites of Quartz, really beautiful.

In Madagascar people found polychrome Liddicoatite, very gemmy, and in some cases also doubly terminated.

We have left Morocco to last. While this has not been the best year for this country, the Acanthites from Imiter that was proposed to us during the show reached really exceptional levels of quality. At the moment, and as we said on our web site when we first showed some, we think that the sellers are too optimistic about prices for this material and that the prices that they ask are often far too high, if not ridiculous. Time will tell, as we saw many Acanthites on sale at high prices. We will see if the market can absorb them.
On a happier note the cobaltian Calcites from Ahrbar were also available. It is very beautiful material with a good variety of crystal form and color.

So that is our snap shot of Munich 2005, we have told it as we saw it.

Aufwiedersehn...


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