Russell had, over the years, acquired the whole or part of a considerable number of other collections, some dating back to 1800 or earlier, many of them containing specimens no longer obtainable in situ during his own lifetime. This Who’s Who of prominent British collectors of minerals includes Philip Rashleigh (1728-1811), John Hawkins (1761-1841), Lady Elisabeth Anne Coxe Hippisley (1760-1843), Edmund Pearse (1788-1856), George Fox (1784- 1850), Alfred Fox (1794-1874), Robert Were Fox (1789-1877), Sir Maziere Brady (1796-1871), Sir Warington W. Smyth (1817-1890), Baroness Burdett-Coutts (1814-1906), John Ruskin (1819-1900), Samuel Henson (1848- 1930), J.H. Collins (1841-1916), Col. R.B. Rimington (1828-1910), W. Semmons (1841-1915) and part of the Williams Collection from Burncoose (Kingsbury, 1966). Starkey (2022:118-202) provides a comprehensive survey of virtually all historic collections purchased by Sir Russell. Thanks to Sir Russell’s detailed labels, networks of mineral dealers and collectors can be recovered, with additional names such as dealers John Lavin (1796-1856) and Richard Talling (1820-1883), and collector Lord of Dunstanville (1757-1835). Early specimens from some of these historical collections are described in later sections.

Scarce 1952 offprint Philip Rashleigh... and His Mineral Collection. Sir Russell wrote several articles on historic mineral collections.

Calcite
Millclose Mine, South Darley, Matlock, Derbyshire, England

Description: Group of multi-terminated, colourless to translucent scalenohedral crystals in parallel growth, with Pyrite phantoms over a previous growth of Calcite (a similar but 23-cm long specimen can be seen in Starkey (2022:Fig.162) indicating that the present specimen was a duplicate of the Russell collection) - We learn from Starkey (2022:83) that Russell had probably a consultancy arrangement with Millclose Mine in 1939 to recover some valuable commodity at a time of national need, WWII having just broken out. Millclose Mine was one of his favorite localities (Starkey, 2022:114) and he was already collecting minerals there in 1897 (Starkey, 2022:100). With Sir Russell's detailed handwritten label: "Calcite with included pyrite. Mill Close Mine, Darley Dale, Derbyshire. From one of a series of large cavities in all that remains of the ore body at the extreme end of the 171 fathom level north directly under the loadstone. The most northerly point reached in the mine. Collected by A. Russell Dec 13 1939".
Dimensions: 10 x 6 x 5.5 cm.

Provenance: Sir Arthur Russell (1939-prior to 1964). Since this specimen is not accompanied by a NHM label, it is likely that Sir Russell sold or traded it prior to the transfer of his collection to the British Museum.

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No title, Ivory Coast Tektite Field Notebook (w. catalogues), by J. Saul
Abidjan & Daoukro area, Ivory Coast: Unpublished manuscript, 1965

Description: Spiral notebook with green cover, composed of 29 written pages and some more blank pages describing the 1965 MIT/Saul expedition to the Ivory Coast tektite strewn field, including two catalogues of the collected tektites. Mainly written as a log of the expedition, the notebook lists different localities, whether tektites were found or not, names of people owning tektites and at what price they were willing to sell. Additional details about geological context and local folklore are given and reproduced in Saul (1969). The notebook also contains a sketch map of the road network inside the strewn field, a 5-pp. catalogue of the 95 found specimens (i), and counts of specimens in other collections. A second 2-pp. summary catalogue, tipped in the notebook (ii), only lists the first 76 tektites. The later catalogue was prepared by John Saul while he was weighing and sorting specimens in the final days of the expedition as proven by two of the photographs that follow. Both catalogues list the specimen number, locality area, approximate weight, stone characteristics and some additional comments. Thanks to a survey of Ivory Coast tektite collections written down in the notebook, we get a better idea of the overall distribution of those elusive tektites in collections, as of 1965. We learn first that almost all specimens have been found between 1964 and 1965. Alfred Lacroix, who was the first to describe Ivory Coast tektites in 1935, had “almost certainly at least 12; 5 at French Mus. Nat. Hist. certain.” Saul’s notebook lists a few other sources, the most important being the Heidelbergers who found 59 tektites in the scope of 11 days, also in 1965. The SODEMI collection was composed of 17 specimens. The Saul/MIT expedition was the one yielding the largest number of specimens (95). As of the writing of his field notes, John Saul counted a total of 209 Ivory Coast tektites known to exist.
Accompanied with a copy of Saul's 1969 offprint inscribed to the TC.

Provenance: John Saul (1965-2014)

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Photograph Archive of the 1965 Ivory Coast Fieldtrip
Abidjan & Daoukro area, Ivory Coast: Unpublished, 1965

Description: A collection of 9 photographs taken during the 1965 expedition in the Ivory Coast tektite strewn field. Kodrachrome 35mm slides (positive transparencies), with penned notes and stamp-dated May 1965. The photographs were taken by John Saul and his collaborator Elliott White Miller. The set includes a photograph of John Saul standing over gold diggings from which tektites were found (west of road to Daoukro), four photographs of him talking to crowds to explain what he was looking for, one picture of his open hand with three of the best tektites (perhaps taken back in Abidjan), and three photographs of John Saul inside a modern building, likely in Abidjan, weighing (on a pan balance) and sorting tektites (pers. comm., J. Saul). The 2-pp. catalogue previously described can be seen on tow of the images! Regarding the photograph showing three men holding a tektite, John Saul confirmed to the TC that he at least purchased the specimen from the man directly next to him. Saul (1969:207) explains that tektites were found "when pits were dug in the alluvium for gold. This occupation was much more widespread in the 1930's before coffee growing and cocoa cultivation were introduced into the area." Interestingly, he adds that he and his colleague Elliott White Miller had been invited to see two such diggings, one located at Dadeikro No. 2 (locality C) and the other east of Kongoti (locality L), an example of which is shown the matching photograph.

Provenance: John Saul (1965-2020's)

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Portrait of H.O. Beyer on a 1965 cover of Philippines International.

Henry Otley Beyer (1883-1966), who studied geology at the University of Denver, developed an interest in Philippine culture in 1904 while visiting the St. Louis Exposition. The Philippine exhibit evidently made a strong impression on the young Beyer, since he applied the following year for a position with the Ethnological Survey of Manila. After three years of study in the Philippines, Beyer left to return to the islands in 1910, after graduate study at Harvard and other travels. He was later appointed ethnologist in the Bureau of Science and, in 1916, became Curator of the Philippine Museum, a position he held, later as Honorary Curator, until the outbreak of World War II. Although best known for his contributions to anthropology, earning him recognition as the "dean of Philippine anthropology," Beyer was also a dedicated investigator and collector of tektites. He was the first to report the presence of tektites in the Philippines in 1926, based on discoveries at an archaeological site in Rizal Province on Luzon Island. His lifelong research on Philippinites was compiled in a comprehensive two-part monograph titled Philippine Tektites, which includes many of his papers along with detailed collection catalogues. The Beyer Collection (regarded as one of the finest assemblages of Philippine artifacts, manuscripts, and documents) was housed in several residences he leased in the Ermita district of Manila. In 1943, with the assistance of the occupying Japanese authorities, part of the collection was transferred to the Museum and Institute of Archaeology & Ethnology in Manila, though it remained privately owned. This building, located on Jose P. Laurel Street in the San Miguel district, housed the Bureau of Census and Statistics on the ground floor, while the Beyer Collection occupied the upper floors. The remainder of the collection stayed in Beyer's residence on Nebraska Street but was tragically destroyed in a fire. Following this loss, Beyer took extensive measures to safeguard what remained at the museum. In his own assessment, tektites ranked as the most important component of the collection, as he strongly believed in their extraterrestrial origin. Since its beginnings in 1926, the collection had grown significantly, becoming the largest tektite collection in the world by the mid-twentieth century. The tektite collection remained in the Beyer family until the 2000s. In 2005, his grandson, Henry N. Beyer, sold the majority of the collection at auction, with the remainder acquired around 2006 by collector Desmond Leong of Tektite Inc.

Bikolite (Philippinite)
Coco Grove, Bikol

Description: With painted number 10, catalogued in Beyer (1962:164) and described there as "deeply-grooved irregular spheroid, anciently spalled", inventory number 165, "van Eek Box No10". We learn from pp. 154-155: "Notes on 1940: Unexpectedly, van Eek came to Manila on March 8th and brought for me about 40% of his very fine Coco Grove Collection. He has suddenly been ordered to Sumatra to work on the big Marsman placer property there (...). Van Eek is taking the remainder of his collection with him to Sumatra - but wishes to give half of it to Prof. Rutten at Utrecht, when he goes home on leave (if the European war permits) sometime next year. In the meantime he has promised to send back to me his revised report on the Coco Grove studies shortly after he reaches his new post;" and from pp. 173-174: "(1961) We now know that van Eek was killed in Sumatra, by local guerrillas, at the beginning of the war - and that so far as anyone can now discover, all of his property (including the tektite collections) was destroyed when the barracks were burned and looted." The whereabouts of only four van Eek specimens are currently known (incl. the present specimen) despite Beyer (1962:) emphasising: "Van Eek's splendid contribution to our Bikol Collection amounts to a total of 329 specimens (at least half of which are big) - and makes the collection unique, since it now contains some of the best specimens from all of the known Bikol areas. The entire lot is listed under BK-20, but I have not yet had time to weigh and measure them. It contains a good selection of practically all the Coco Grove types, and makes a fine study lot." This specimen survived social unrest twice. First, it was saved by collector van Eek, who brought it to Beyer, sparing it from the fate that befell specimens in Sumatra. Second, while stored in a drawer or cabinet at Beyer's Manila property, it might have been lost to fire had it not been moved in time to the Museum and Institute of Archaeology & Ethnology.
Weight:141 grams

Provenance: D. van Eek (?-1940) • Henry Otley Beyer (1940-1966) • W.B. Beyer (1966-2000s). While in the H.O. Beyer collection, the specimen remained in his residence until 1943, before it moved to the Museum and Institute of Archaeology & Ethnology.

References: Beyer (1962:164)

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PRESENTATION COPIES - Philippine Tektites, by H.O. Beyer
Manila: Univ. Philippines Publ. in Nat. Hist., 1962

Description: Philippine Tektites, A Contribution to the Study of the Tektite Problem in General, in the light of both, Past and Recent Discoveries. Univ. Philippines Publ. In Nat. Hist., Quezon City and Manila, Vol. 1, Parts I and II, 290 pp., 43 pls. - Black leather binding with gilt title, identical for both presentation copies: (i) Inscribed by H.O. Beyer: "To Albert and Marjorie Rosenholt, in memory of many tektite-hunting field trips. - On my 80th birthday, July 13th, 1963, H. Otley Beyer"; (ii) Inscribed by H.O. Beyer's son: "Manila | September 20, 1966 | To Don S. Muni | compliments of the Beyer Family - | William B. Beyer" (dated only three months before H.O. Beyer's death). A softcover version exists suggesting that the bound copies were prepared by the Beyer family specially for presentation purposes (softcover front and back have been preserved and bound into the rear of our first copy). Beyer's life-long work on Philippinites is compiled in this large two-part monograph which includes most of his papers but also several collection catalogues, such as: ‘Appendix A. List of Bikol Tektites collected prior to August 1st, 1938’. When the specimen is not found by Beyer himself, the name of the collector is given (see also appendix B-C). Other catalogues include ‘List of tektites found in the course of our Rizal Province archaeological survey (1926-1932)’ and ‘Preliminary catalogue and accession-list of the Kalamian Tektite Collection’. It is to be noted that Beyer was preparing a second volume with parts III and IV but he passed away before this project could be finalised.

Provenance: Beyer family

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Meteorites were often a non-negligible part of mineral collecting. Some of the greatest American collections were the ones built by the famous mineral collectors S.C.H. Bailey (271 localities) and C.S. Bement (226) according to Wülfing's 1895 inventory of meteorite collections. A list of the Bement collection dated 1897 counted 413 falls only three years later (Spencer, 1949). Although 'Museum Builder' Henry Augustus Ward of Ward's Natural Science Establishment held only 178 localities in 1894, he would go on to assemble the largest collection in the world by the early twentieth century, after acquiring, among others, Julien de Siemaschko's collection, the largest private meteorite collection of Europe.

Surveys of meteorite collections (Wülfing, 1895; Spencer, 1949).

Warren Mathews Foote (1872-1934), son of mineral dealer Albert E. Foote, took over management of his father's business in 1895 and changed its name to the Foote Mineral Company, Philadelphia, in 1900. In meteorite dealing, he is best remembered as being the main supplier of the many thousands of Holbrook stones that fell in 1912 in Arizona, which had just become a US State the same year. He recovered most of the Holbrook meteorite material, including 29 individuals over 1 kg, 6,000 individuals of 1 gram to 1 kg and 8,000 individuals under 1 gram (Foote, 1912a). Holbrook stones were central to his collection and sales stock, as attested by his 1912 catalogue (Foote, 1912b). With so many specimens, Foote was able to do some aggressive marketing, offering specimens in series of hundreds, representative of the strewn field size distribution. Foote had 11 Holbrook series available for sale, from 836 specimens down to 57. He especially mentioned that "no individuals of less than 10 grams nor more than 100 grams [were] sold except in series of 500 grams or more". An astute dealer, he wrote "Because of the low price and great scientific as well as popular interest, three-quarters of the Holbrook fall was permanently distributed as soon as offered in October. Those desiring series should order immediately" (p. 7). In the Foote Collection of Meteorites chapter, we learn that his collection contained some rarities from the S.C.H. Bailey collection (including the original labels), but while constituting "the nucleus and chief excellence of the collection, its greatest individual superiority lies in the series of over two thousand complete boloids from the very recent and most wonderful stone shower near Holbrook, Arizona, July 19th 1912 [...] This suite includes all of the specimens described in the preliminary note [Foote, 1912a] and is among the finest series illustrative of a meteorite shower, to be found in any collection in the world." It is very likely that his Bailey specimens were obtained from a trade with the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) for the 2,000 Hobrook stones that became part of the museum collection (Reeds, 1937).

Holbrook
Navajo County, Arizona, USA. 1912 fall. Ordinary chondrite (L6)

Description: (i) Suite of 35 Holbrook peas from a sub-gram to c. 7 grams, all carrying the AMNH inventory number consisting of a black number on white paint: 1188, 1281, 1288, 1355, 1375, 1376, 1389, 1404, 1407, 1415, 1439, 1458, 1470, 1494, 3150, 3171, 3177, 3178, 3183, 3186, 3195, 3198, 3199, 3226, 3240, 3265, 3280, 3303, 3304, 3306, 3308, 3317, 3324, 3344, 3348 (note that Holbrook specimens are numbered 1125-to-3734 in Reeds (1937) except for the first listed specimen). It is likely that those numbers were painted by assistant George Pinkley in the period 1928-1932. The system of applying individual AMNH inventory numbers to meteorite specimens was adopted in 1918 during the assistantship of Joseph Tyson. This was an improvement over the previously used system consisting of combined numbers and letters. It complemented the card system started in 1914 by assistant Adam Brückner. Considering the shear amount of Holbrook stones making for more than half of all specimens in the collection, Reeds needed more help and during the assistantship of George Pinkley (1928-1932), all of the smaller specimens were re-weighed and the weights in grams noted.
Dimensions: from 1 to 2.5 cm diameter
(ii) Larger specimens with early AMNH red number 586 (likely affixed under Hovey's curatorship) and the standard black-on-white number. AMNH numbers (with weights) are: 1138 (60g fragment, 215g specimen in Reeds, 1937), 1177 (43g complete stone), unk. (no. carelessly removed by a previous owner, 15g stone), and 1249 (8g oriented button with rollover rim). As indicated by Reeds (1937:520), Hovey found little time to devote to the cataloguing of the specimens and at the time of his death in 1924, only a part of the collection had been catalogued. Those red numbers are often erroneously referred to as Foote numbers. Note that no. 586 corresponds to the first Holbrook specimen catalogued in Reeds (1937).
Dimensions: 5.4 x 3.5 x 2.5 cm, 4.3 x 3 x 2.3 cm, 2.7 x 2.4 x 1.2 cm, 2.6 x 2 x 1 cm
(iii) Four other peas part of the 2007 Bonhams auction (see above) with AMNH nos. 1456, 1460, 3281 and 3332 (with respective weights 7.8, 3.2, 1.0 and 1.0 grams) and accompanied by the auction card with price estimate. Comes with the 2007 Bonhams catalogue.

Provenance: Warren M. Foote dealership (1912) • AMNH (1912-2000s)

References: Reeds (1937:567-569, 575-576)

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HOLBROOK | 1/10 Diam.
Philadelphia, TBD: W.M. Foote TBC, c. 1912

Description: Photograph of a reconstitution in studio of the Holbrook meteorite strewn field downscaled to 2.4 m by 1 m. Photographic heavy stock paper, inscriptions "14CC" and "HOLBROOK | 1/10 Diam." Hundreds of specimens are distributed by decreasing weight from left to right, and with the diameter of specimens varying from 1 to 15 cm, mimicking a miniature strewn field at 1:10 scale. The ground is represented by a layer of sand or by some other material of similar texture. The installation is on top of a white sheet over a wooden floor. This is an intriguing and rare, potentially unique photograph, likely elaborated and produced by Warren M. Foote since he was the main distributor of this meteorite, had enough material available for such a production and since he similarly illustrated the cover of his scarce 1912 catalogue (see below). Foote also encouraged the display of large series of stones in a similar fashion: "The following lots resemble the one shown on outside cover of catalog [...] Several kilos of the loose soil in which the stones were found will be furnished with each series, if requested" (Foote, 1912b:7). Yet, the granularity of the simulated soil seen in the photograph seems coarser than the one observed on the 1912 Foote catalogue where we read on the title page that it had been "photographed on the loose soil." This point questions the certainty of a Foote origin. Displaying meteorites as a strewn field in a collection cabinet is only possible for falls with hundreds of specimens available (other examples including Mocs and Pultusk, before Holbrook).

Provenance: Warren M. Foote TBC

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Meteorites, Part I. Prices of individual specimens, Part II. The Foote Collection
Philadelphia: Foote Mineral Company, 1912

Description: Foote, W.M. (1912), Meteorites, Part I. Prices of individual specimens, Part II. The Foote Collection. Foote Mineral Company, Philadelphia, 64 pp. A very scarce catalogue with a beautifully illustrated cover. In addition to the valuable information on Foote's Holbrook suites (see above), the catalogue is also valuable for its inclusion of meteorites from the Bailey collection: "A rare opportunity is here presented for collectors or institutions to secure certain falls which may never enter the market again [...] We refer to the numerous rarities of the historic collection formed by the late S. C. H. Bailey."

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Pultusk
Poland. 1868 fall. Ordinary chondrite (H5)

Description: Five stones totalling 39 grams with an impressive suite of historical inventory numbers: Ward-Coonley nos. 440, 519 and Field NHM no. Me1585. Accompanied by a FNHM label photocopy and listed in a number of collection catalogues, the Ward-Coonley collection catalogues of 1901 and 1904, and successive FNHM catalogues of 1916 and 1965. Interestingly, while not listed in the Ward-Coonley 1900 catalogue (Pultusk specimens having number 329 there), they must be part of the series of Pultusk stones described in the addendum: "A very interesting suite of about two hundred specimens... raning in size from a gooseberry to a small apple".
Dimensions: from 1.5 to 2.5 cm diameter, up to 3 cm for elongated specimen

Provenance: Ward-Coonley Collection (1900-1912) • FNHM (1912-)

References: Ward (1901:18); Ward (1904:60); Farrington (1916:290); Horback & Olsen (1965:282)

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The Ward=Coonley Collection of Meteorites, by H.A. Ward
Chicago, USA: xx, 1900, 1901, 1904

Description: The complete trilogy of the Ward-Coonley collection catalogues consisting of:
(i) Ward, H.A. (1900), The Ward=Coonley Collection of Meteorites. Chicago, 100 pp., 6 pls. Illustrated hardcover on both sides. Includes the following penned list after the catalogue: "Feb.27, 1901. At this date this coll. has 516 ± (507 sure) falls & finds, Vienna... 500 (?), British Museum... 484, jardin des Plantes. Paris 460±, Bement's 450".
(ii) Ward, H.A. (1901), The Ward=Coonley Collection of Meteorites. 28 pp., title page with a printed illustration of the Canyon Diablo meteorite. Stapled, without cover.
(iii) Ward, H.A. (1904), The Ward=Coonley Collection of Meteorite. Marsh, Aitken & Curtis Company, Chicago, 113 pp., 5 in-text images, 8 pls. and 2 photo prints of collection cases. Original black cloth with gilt-stamped cover title in pristine condition (whereas other copies are usually soiled). Compliments card from H.A Ward tipped in with inked note "Von Prof. H.A. Ward erhalten 1905 Knett" (Josef Knett, 1869-1946, Austrian Geologist).

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PRESENTATION COPY - The History of Mount Mica..., by A.C. Hamlin
Bangor, Maine: A.C. Hamlin, 1895

Description: Hamlin, Augustus Choate (1895), The History of Mount Mica Of Maine, U.S.A. And Its Wonderful Deposits of Matchless Tourmalines. Published by Augustus Choate Hamlin, Bangor, Maine, 72 pp., 51 plates (43 chromolithographies), 4 photographic illustrations (1 folding). 8vo, original publisher's red cloth binding with gilt lettering on front cover and on spine, lightly rubbed, water stain in left bottom corner of the first pages, loose binding of the first few pages. It should be noted that publisher's bindings exist in red and dark green cloth. Inscribed by the author "To Mrs Shedd with the best wishes of the author, Augustus C Hamlin Nov. 6, 1903". Three lines of text stricken through p. 63 by a pencil; plate numbers 24 and 26 switched in red p. 68 - This privately published volume chronicles the history of an important, early American gemstone locality. Beginning with a chapter on the discovery of Mount Mica, the book continues with stories of other explorations, a description of the deposit, and diagrams showing where the major pockets were found. Of particular interest are the finely executed plates, showing various tourmaline crystals collected over the years. These plates are among the best chromo-lithographes of minerals ever produced in the United States (Schuh). This very scarce book can be considered an exhibition catalogue with the fine specimens illustrated in the 43 colour plates given their provenance. Many were part of the Hamlin Cabinet; others were from Harvard, Amherst College, Yale, and the Carter collection.

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Portrait of George Frederick Kunz [from a news archive, mounted on red paper, with a handwritten note '8550' struck through on the reverse and replaced by '#6097']. We have been unable to locate another copy of this photograph.

George Frederick Kunz (1856-1932) of New York City, remembered as America's first gemologist, was also one of the most important builders of mineral, gem and meteorite collections, next only maybe to Henry A. Ward. By the time Kunz was twenty he had already amassed a personal collection of over 4,000 mineral specimens, which he sold to the University of Minnesota. This marked the beginning of a career spent assembling and then selling world-class mineral collections to institutions and collectors of prominence, likely due to his position at the nation's most prestigious jewellery. He was indeed hired in 1879 by Charles L. Tiffany as a gem expert. His passion, knowledge and innovative ideas (introducing semi-precious coloured gems as jewels) kept him busy at Tiffany & Co. for the next fifty-three years where he ultimately became vice-president. Kunz's many responsibilities included finding sources-in American and elsewhere-of the semiprecious, coloured gemstones that now captured his employer's and the public's attention, which is epitomised by the gemstone named Kunzite (Conklin, 1986). He wrote profusionaly over his lifetime, producing about 500 papers mostly on gems but also minerals and meteorites. Kunz became acquainted with prestigious customers, among them the wealthy financier John Pierpont Morgan. In 1888, Morgan commissioned Kunz to assemble a gemstone collection for international exhibition. The 382-specimen collection that Kunz put together won two gold medals at the 1889 Exposition Universelle in Paris. In 1900, Morgan commissioned Kunz to assemble another world-class collection of gems and minerals: the 4,000-specimen Second Tiffany-Morgan Collection. The following year, Morgan, again relying on Kunz's collecting expertise, paid $100,000 to acquire Clarence S. Bement's spectacular 12,300-specimen collection. Morgan later donated these Kunz- assembled collections to New York City's American Museum of Natural History (AMNH). Of the dozen collections Kunz made, another noteworthy one was for part of the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago, purchased by Marshall Field to form the core of the Field Museum of Natural History (FNHM). Kunz also helped other collectors acquiring new specimens, for instance, Clarence S. Bement, Heber R. Bishop for jades, and Colonel Roebling. His personal meteorite collection was sold to the AMNH in 1905 (ref. needed).

Forest City
Winnebago County, Iowa, USA. 1890 fall. Ordinary chondrite (H5)

Description: Suite of two meteorites, with rich accompanying documentation:
(i) ILLUSTRATED - Large individual of 325 grams with 3 inventory numbers: two red, 11 and 67xvii, and the AMNH number 2409 (black on white paint). Also accompanied by an original AMNH label. This superb specimen is illustrated in a photograph of the AMNH Forest City meteorite display in the Foyer (Hovey, 1907; see also the 1923 photograph below), confirming its presence there, very likely between 1905 and 1935.
Dimensions: 8.5 x 6 x 4.5 cm
(ii) Individual of 76 grams (with polished window) with 3 inventory numbers: two red, 11 and 67xxiii, and the AMNH number 2424 (black on white paint). This specimen is listed as am 81-gram complete mass in the 1937 and 1964 AMNH catalogues (so before a small end-cut was removed).
Dimensions: 5.3 x 3 x 3 cm
Reeds (1937) indicates that the system of applying individual AMNH inventory numbers to meteorite specimens was adopted in 1918 during the assistantship of Joseph Tyson. This was an improvement over the previously used system consisting of combined numbers and letters. It is therefore likely that the alphanumeric designation ('67' for Forest City, followed by a Roman numeral) represents an early AMNH inventory number, while the number '11' was applied by Kunz to Forest City specimens.

Provenance: George F. Kunz (1890-1905) • AMNH (1905-2000 TBC). Kunz sold his meteorite collection to the AMNH in 1905 (ref. needed).

References: Hovey (1907:34, (i) only); Reeds (1937:560); Mason (1964:14)

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The "Forest City" Meteorite
NYC, New York, USA: Culver Service Photos Research of New York City, 1923

Description: A rare original photograph showing the Forest City meteorites on display in the Foyer of the AMNH. Stamped "Please credit photograph to the AMERICAN MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY New York", with the penned note "1781 | The "Forest City" Meteorite | Winnebago County, Iowa | Nov. 1923" and sticker from Culver Service Photos Research of New York City. Accompanied by The Foyer Collection of Meteorites guide leaflet (Hovey, 1907) where a cropped version of the TC 1923 photograph is featured p. 34.

Provenance: American Museum of Natural History (1923)

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Ephemera on Jadeite Collecting
NYC, New York, USA: Unpublished material, 1888, 1900s

Description: An archive formed by the TC consisting of:
(i) Letter about Kunz's jade collecting. Four-page letter, dated October 22, 1888, addressed by G.F. Kunz to fellow mineralogist John Eyerman. Kunz proudly notes: "I have one of the finest collections in the U.S., especially of archaeological varieties. Several of the objects are unique." In the letter, Kunz describes a 7-pound "snow cutter of jade" from Alaska and a "jadeite adze" he deems "the finest in the world" (now known as the Kunz Axe, currently on loan at the AMNH). He also mentions a labeled series of jadeites from the late Dr. Heinrich Fischer, along with over a hundred pamphlets on jade from the Fischer library. Fischer, an authority on the subject, authored the landmark 1875 study Nephrit und Jadeit. This fascinating letter provides an intimate glimpse into the early days of Kunz's jade collecting providing a window into his passion and expertise.
(ii) Rare photograph of G.F. Kunz examining a large Jade mass at the American Museum of Natural History. The white marks and black oval indicate the parts of the photograph to be masked for publication. With stamp on the back side from the NYC 6th Avenue studio of Jessie Tarbox Beals (opened in 1905; Beals (1870-1942) is remembered as the first published female photojournalist in the United States).

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Col. ROEBLING COPY - Pearls, their Occurrence... by G.F. Kunz
Washington, D.C., USA: U.S. Fish Commission, 1894, 1898

Description: Two published works on American pearls, bound together for presentation: Kunz, G.F. (1900), Pearls, their Occurrence in the United States, etc. Two parts: (i) Kunz, G.F. (1898), The Fresh-water Pearls and Pearl Fisheries of the United States. Extracted from U.S. Fish Commission Bulletin for 1897, pp. 373-426, pls. I-XXII. (ii) Kunz, G.F. (1894), On Pearls, and the Utilization and Application of the Shells in which they are found in the Ornamental Arts, as shown at the World's Columbian Exposition. Extracted from the Bulletin of the U.S. Fish Commission for 1893, pp. 439-457, pls. 18-41. Quarto half leather and marbled boards. Spine with five raised bands and lettered in gilt. Marbled endpapers. A bound-in ribbon marker. Top page edges gilt. Inscribed by the author: "To Col Washington A. Roebling with the compliments of the author, George R. Kunz, Jan 7, 1901" - The 1894 article details the pearls exhibited at the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition. The reader is guided through the displays by Kunz the gem expert, as he visits the Tiffany Pavilion in the Manufactures Building. He also explores the exhibits of French jewellers Vever and Boucheron, Professor Ward's collection in the south gallery, and other notable examples of pearls and pearl artistry showcased across various national sections of the exposition.

Provenance: Colonel W.A. Roebling (1901-1926). Washington Augustus Roebling (1837-1926), an American civil engineer who supervised the construction of the Brooklyn Bridge, was one of the great mineral collectors of the turn of the twentieth century. His collection of over 16,000 specimens was donated in 1926 by his son to the Smithsonian Institution and became an important part of its mineral and gem collection. In his 1927 recollections, Kunz recounts how he assisted Colonel Roebling in enhancing his mineral collection.

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Staurolite
Windham, Maine, USA

Description: Not an aesthetic showpiece, but rather a representative example from a site renowned among mineral collectors. Particularly interesting for bearing a Kunz label (variant from 1886 or before) and the red painted number 428.2 on the back. This number helped us track the specimen to the New York State Academy of Mineralogy (NYSAM). Staurolite specimens nos. 428.7, 428.8 and 428.9 are indeed found in the 2018 NYSAM catalogue.
Dimensions: 13.5 x 9.5 x 4 cm

Provenance: George F. Kunz (?-1886) • New York State Academy of Mineralogy (1886-?). From NYSAM’s records, we learn that in 1886 an extensive general mineral collection was purchased from Kunz.

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List of Meteorites in Collection of S.C.H. Bailey
Cortlandt on Hudson, Westchester Co., NY.: Unpublished manuscript, 1885

Description: One-page manuscript registering 107 meteorites that were in the S.C.H. Bailey collection as of June 5th, 1885. A study of this catalogue led Bandli (2017) to list some of the most notable specimens: Benares (a) (59 grams), an important meteorite in the story of the scientific acceptance of meteorites as extra-terrestrial objects, Lodran (20 grams), the type specimen for the lodranite meteorite group, or the main mass of Tomhannock Creek (1,357 grams). Bailey also listed a "considerable number due from Harvard University" he was to receive that same year, including the ultra rare Martian meteorite Chassigny. The timing suggests that Harvard University, having purchased the J. Lawrence Smith (1818-1883) collection back in 1883, now had numerous duplicates available for trade. The red marks visible on the manuscript indicate the specimens that the prominent British dealer James Reynolds Gregory (1832-1899) was interested in for trade.

Provenance: S.C.H. Bailey (1885) • J.R. Gregory (1885-?)

References: Bandli, M. (2017), A collection of short, historical notes on meteorites. Space Rocks Hunting & Collecting Magazine, 2(1), 16-17.

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Clarence Sweet Bement (1843-1923), a manufacturer in Philadelphia, spent 35 years of his time, money, and effort in building what has been considered "the finest private collection of minerals ever made" (Canfield, 1923). Bement began to collect minerals shortly after the end of the Civil War, in about 1866, and patronised the leading mineral dealers of his days to obtain the very best specimens. He also secured the privilege of picking out the best samples from the minerals accumulated by earlier collectors (e.g., Ernest Schernikow and Joseph Willcox collections; Canfield, 1923) and purchased part of the Norman Spang collection in 1882 among others (e.g., from Hidden, from Baron Braun of Vienna). In 1900, J. Pierpont Morgan presented to the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) the Bement collection. While Bement allowed visitors to his collection room, it was not until its display in the newly formed Morgan Hall that its extent could be fully appreciated.

Postcard of the Morgan Hall at the AMNH where the Bement mineral collection is displayed.

Siderite on Galena
Neudorf, Harz, Saxony-Anhalt, Germany

Description: This cabinet-size specimen features excellent Siderite rhombs of an iridescent golden-brown colour, on modified cuboctahedral Galenas with good metallic luster (all on sparkling Quartz). The intergrown Galenas range up to 1.8 cm across and the Siderites reach up to 1.6 cm on edge. Accompanied by an antique AMNH label with inventory number 8114.
Dimensions: 9.6 x 7.5 x 6.0 cm

Provenance: Clarence S. Bement (?-1900) • AMNH (1900-?), presented by J.P. Morgan

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Scheelite
Traversella Mine, Piedmont, Italy

Description: This miniature specimen consists of a unique modified, pseudo-octahedral crystal with sharply defined faces, marked luster, and a deep orangey colour. The back side is an uncrystallised contact face. Accompanied by an antique AMNH label with inventory number 16928.
Dimensions: 3.9cm x 3.3cm x 2 cm

Provenance: Clarence S. Bement (?-1900) • AMNH (1900-?), presented by J.P. Morgan

References: Gratacap (1912:310). The Scheelite paragraph reads: "Bohemia, Saxony, Germany at Guttenen, Switzerland, France, Scotland, England, Silesia, are represented with, of course, a good deal of emphasis laid on Bohemia. Of these the noteworthy members are 16899, 16901, 16902, 16903, 16905, (tabular, interesting, base and pyramid, crystals, curiously etched, and minutely pitted), 16906 (distorted, beautifully shagreened faces, translucent), 16907, 16909 (apparently two generations of crystals), 16918, 16919, (magnificent golden-red octahedron), 16928, 16929, (a very large yellow opaque octaedron, with faces impressed, striated, and curved)..."

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'Lady Slipper' pseudomorph, Siderite pseudomorph after Baryte
Virtuous Lady Mine, Buckland, Devon, England

Description: A remarkably complete and highly aesthetic 'Lady Slipper', extremely sharp cast of what once was a bladed crystal of Baryte, replaced by encrustation by the Siderite. Carries the AMNH inventory 8166 penned in white on the back and a later number 29M. Accompanied with the AMNH photocopy of their original accession information here cut into four smaller labels. It notes the purchase price of $1 in 1875. Further, it retains a modern display label from the Morgan Hall where much of the collection was displayed for some 50 years (the back displays a note that reads "29M Morgan Hall Display label AMNH") - The legendary 'Lady Slippers', name given by the 19th-century English miners, have always been some of the most famous epimorph/pseudomorphs. These have never been found again, and remain one of the most rare and hard to get of the mid-19th century European classics.
Dimensions: 9.4 x 5.1 x 1.0 cm

Provenance: Clarence S. Bement (1875-1900) • AMNH (1900-?), presented by J.P. Morgan

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Wulfenite on Pyromorphite
Wheatley Mine, Phoenixvill, Chester Co., Pennsylvania, USA

Description: A small cabinet-size specimen of an American classic: Orange tabular crystals of Wulfenite (to about 1.5 mm) scattered over crystalline green Pyromorphite coating a matrix of white Quartz (including tiny Quartz crystals in vugs) and limonitic gossan. The accompagning AMNH index card photocopy indicates that C.S. Bement acquired the specimen from Norman Spang in 1864. Carries on the back the AMNH painted number 17007 and an older glued sticker with no. 8.
Dimensions: 9.5 x 5.0 x 3.5 cm

Provenance: Norman Spang (?-1864) • Clarence S. Bement (1864-1900) • AMNH (1900-?), presented by J.P. Morgan. Canfield (1923) wrote: "SPANG, Norman, Pittsburgh, Penn. This collection was the result of great expense and of years of exertion. Its standards were of the highest rank, and its only rivals in America were the Vaux and the Bement collections. It is said that Mr. Bement paid $22,500 for the privilege of taking only such specimens as would not be duplicates in his own collection..."

References: Gratacap (1912:311). It reads, with a charming reference to Ruskin: "The Wulfenite section is a mineral flower-garden; perhaps Ruskin's curiously whimsical, perverted and extravagant words in his Ethics of the Dust are applicable here, though it is very evident that American contributions have made Wulfenite the flaming spectacle it now is in cabinets [...] There is an interesting suite from the Wheatley Mine, Chester Co., Pa. (Phoenixville), 17007-10."

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Chalcedony
Pednandrea Mine, Redruth, Cornwall, England

Description: Cabinet-size specimen representing a complex translucent, orange-brown, botryoidal growth pattern augmented by a silky luster on a matrix of quartz. A similar-size specimen but of elongated stalactitic growths is illustrated Figure 212 of Starkey (2022), no. BM.1964,R2308, of which the present specimen is a duplicate. Pednandrea Mine, of which this specimen originates, is a famous historical Cornish locality which was closed in 1891. With Sir Russell's typical handwritten label: "Chalcedony. Pednandrea mine, Redruth, Cornwall. J. Lavin of Penzance specimen. Baroness Burdett-Coutts" and modern British Museum (Dept. of Mineralogy) label indicating "Arthur Russell duplicate".
Dimensions: 9.7 x 8.7 x 4.3 cm

Provenance: John Lavin (?-1856) • his son Edward (1856-1863) • Baroness Angela Burdett-Coutts (1863-1906) • Burdett-Coutts estate (1906-1922) • Sir Arthur Russell (1922-1964) • British Museum (1964-?)

References: Bowell, R., ’Cornwall: Mining and History’, 2018 Dallas Mineral Collecting Symposium, 26’03”-27’31”

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Pyromorphite
Wheal Rose, Sithney, Cornwall, England

Description: Small cabinet-size specimen consisting of a sparking green druse mostly emplaced on a knob of matrix. With Sir Russell's handwritten label: "Pyromorphite. Wheal Rose, Sithney, Cornwall. J. Lavin of Penzance specimen. Baroness Burdett-Coutts collection". The East Wheal Rose mine, of which this specimen originates, closed in 1886.
Dimensions: 7.7 x 5.5 x 3.2 cm

Provenance: John Lavin (?-1856) • his son Edward (1856-1863) • Baroness Angela Burdett-Coutts (1863-1906) • Burdett-Coutts estate (1906-1922) • Sir. Arthur Russell (1922-?)

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No. III of EXOTIC MINERALOGY, by James Sowerby
London: Benjamin Meredith, 1811

Description: Complete bi-monthly part no. III with the wrappers, six plates (XIII-XVIII), and fourteen pages of text (pp. 25-38). One out of 28 parts composing Exotic Mineralogy. Believed to be in almost original state, as originally issued with stab holes from the original stitching of the part. Describes the following six minerals: Boracite (Tab. XIII), Azurite (Tab. XIV), Lapis Lazulite (Tab. XV), Meionite (Tab. XVI), Muriate of Quicksilver (Tab. XVII) and Cinnabar (Tab. XVIII). James Sowerby personally engraved and etched the copperplates used to produce his Mineralogies. They were based on his own drawings of specimens that he owned or that were lend by other collectors. Once the copperplate-engraved outline was printed, usually in black ink on an octavo-sized sheet of paper, it was then hand-tinted within the printed outlines using watercolour paints. This was realised by James Sowerby himself, some family member or employee (Conklin, 1995:87). It can be added that all plates are reverse images of the actual specimens.

Provenance: J. Sinkankas • W. Leicht

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Steatite, pseudomorph of Talc after Quartz
Göpfersgrün, Fichtelgebirge, Bavaria, Germany

Description: Classic pseudomorph of Talc (Steatite) after Quartz from the famous historic Göpfersgrün locality. These unique pseudomorphs, where the softest mineral has replaced one of the hardest minerals on the Mohs scale, are highly praised by collectors. Large pieces, such as this one, are virtually impossible to find. The crystals are here very sharp and have a soft vitreous luster. It comes with two labels handwritten by Ferguson, one glued on the specimen and the other loose.
Dimensions: 9.5 x 8 x 6 cm

Provenance: Sir R. Ferguson (1803^*-1840), Raith Tower Museum • Raith Tower Museum (1840-1997) • Brian Lloyd (1997) • Rob Lavinsky (1998). ^*: A 1803 purchase is inferred from: "On a visit to Hanau in April [1803] he purchased about 30 specimens for [pound]11 including [...] a steatite after quartz at 9 Ecus, found near Bareuth, described as very rare and singular".

References: extraLapis (2012), Pseudomorphosen. extraLapis, 43, 98 pp. [on 'Klassiker aus Gopfersgrun' double page, illustrated p. 47]

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Cassiterite with Quartz
St. Michael's Mount, Marazion (most probable), Cornwall, England

Description: Well developed black crystals of Cassiterite with a brilliant lustre, ranging between 4 and 8 mm, together with small, transparent Quartz crystals, richly covering a 7 x 4 cm sloping surface of a block of mixed slate and massive Quartz. Glued to the specimen are a Devonport label "Or[der] 12; Sp[ecie] 11; [No.] 18" (written by chemist John Prideaux during the collection cataloguing in c. 1834; Sheperd, 2009:tab.1) and another sticker "282" (of unknown origin but also found on other St. Aubyn specimens). It is highly probably that this specimen is from St. Michael's Mount, of which St. Aubyn was the owner.
Dimensions: 11 x 6 x 6 cm

Provenance: Sir John St. Aubyn (1790s?-1834) • Military Library Museum, Devonport (1834-1881) • Devonport Museum (1881-1924) • Plymouth City Museum (1924-?). According to the detailed label of Peter S. Burr, the specimen would have been acquired by Sir Arthur Russell. He notes "Specimen, Devonport 12/11/22 (286), is in the Sir Arthur Russel Collection at the Natural History Museum, London. Arthur Russel's label reads: 'Cassiterite. St. Michael's Mount, Marazion, Cornwall. Sir John St. Aubyn Collection, Clowance.'" A St. Aubyn Cassiterite with similar label "Or[der] 12; Sp[ecie] 11; [No.] ??" is illustrated in Freedman (2021:fig.2).

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Olivenite on Quartz
Wheal Gorland, St Day, Cornwall, England

Description: Specimen hosting a rich showing of olive green Olivenite (acicular crystals that exhibit an almost 'hairy' appearance) on a quartz crystal matrix, with quartz crystals inter-grown with the Olivenite. Dates back to the turn of the 19th century, after the opening of the mine of Wheal Gorland in 1792 and prior to Lord de Dunstanville's gift to his sister-in-law in 1810/11. With Sir Russell's handwritten label: "Olivenite on quartz. Wheal Gorland, Gwennap, Cornwall. From Lord de Dunstanville to Lady Elizabeth Anne C. Hippisley of Stoneaston Park". We learn from Starkey (2022:171) that Sir Arthur Russell visited the Hippisley collection at the Old Ashmolean Museum in 1939 when it was part of the private collection of curator R. T. Gunther. He noticed "a good series of Cornish minerals presented by Lord de Dunstanville", including "Good olivenites - Wheal Gorland". The Russell collection at the NHM contains seven specimens of olivenite from the Lord-de-Dunstanville–Hippisley chain-of-custody, five of them noted as from Wheal Gorland (Cotterell & Williams, 2019).
Dimensions: 5.7 x 3.8 x 4.6 cm

Provenance: Lord de Dunstanville (>1792-1810/11) • Lady E.A.C. Hippisley (1810/11-1843) • Horner family (1843-1930s) • R.T. Gunther, Old Ashmolean Museum (c. 1930s-1940) • Sir. Arthur Russell (1940-1964 or before). Lady Elizabeth Anne Coxe Hippisley, née Horner (1760-1843) and Lord De Dunstanville's sister-in-law, had a large collection of minerals, which included a suite presented to her by the dealer White Watson (1760-1835). She was also a correspondent of dealer Henry Heuland (Starkey, 2022:171). She spent proliferously in order to acquire the finest specimens, but her extensive geological collection lay hidden for nearly a century in the Literary and Scientific Institute at Frome near to her Ston Easton Park estate in Somerset. In 1937, it was discovered and acquired by Dr. Robert William Theodore Gunther (1869-1940), curator and founder of the Museum of the History of Science, Oxford (Russell, 1944). Following Gunther's death, in 1940, Russell acquired the collection and assimilated the better quality specimens into his own personal collection which he bequeathed to the British Museum (now the NHM) in 1964. The specimens which Russell did not integrate into his own collection he used for exchange. This specimen from the Lord de Dunstanville collection is one of two known in private hands, one of only 62 known to still exist.

References: Mignan (2018:fig.4); Cotterell & Williams (2019:122)

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As we look further back in time, pedigreed objects become increasingly scarce. Mineral specimens are among the oldest collectibles that can still be traced, largely because their valuable labels were often preserved alongside them. This is why this gallery features specimens dating back to the late 18th century. Going even further back, however, the trail becomes far more elusive, with collection catalogues often representing the only surviving evidence of vanished collections. The previous section highlighted some of the most beautifully illustrated mineral catalogues of the Enlightenment, as well as very early catalogues from the 1730s. Earlier documentation of minerals is scattered across the inventories of 17th-century cabinets of curiosities (see our Wunderkammer gallery). A notable outlier is the mineral collection catalogue of Johannes Kentmann, published in 1565, which provides a rare glimpse into mineral collecting during the Renaissance.

The Earliest Mineral & Meteorite Specimens. The oldest documented mineral specimens are two small native silver chisels, collected in 1477 from the St. Georg Mine in Saxony and preserved by Duke Albrecht of Saxony (1443-1500) (Wilson, 1994:16). It is no coincidence that both these early specimens and the first documented mineral collection originated in Saxony, which had been a central hub of European mining since the Middle Ages. Similarly, the meteorite that fell in 1492 at Ensisheim (Alsace, Further Germany) remains the oldest meteorite with a preserved provenance. It was spared destruction to be presented to King Maximilian, son of the reigning Holy Roman Emperor Frederick III, and it is still held today at the sixteenth-century Musée de la Régence. This specimen was collected as a good omen, or, as indicated on the postcard reproduced here, a mythological stone.

ENSISHEIM (Haut-Rhin) 1 - La Pierre Mythologique. Mâcon: Combier, Photographie Véritable.

RASSE DES NEUX COPY - Catalogus Rerum Fossilium Io. Kentmani
Zurich: J. Gesner, 1565

Description: Modern binding, red edges. Stand-alone collection catalogue, including the title page of De Omni Rervm Fossilivm Genere (repaired at bottom corner) and the 2-pp. table of contents describing the eight parts. Inscription on title page: "Franciscus Rassius Noëns chirurgus paxifrinsis, 1566". According to Schuh (Schuh, C.P., Annotated Bio-Bibliography of Mineralogy and Crystallography 1469-1919, unpublished), its printing history is a difficult bibliographic problem: Each of the included works is known to exist as its own separate volume, while complete collections of these tracts are a rarity, suggesting that they were assembled by the publisher from the remaining stock of the various treatises.

Provenance: François Rasse des Neux (1566-1587). François Rasse des Neux (c. 1525-1587), a reputed surgeon at the service of Catherine de Médicis and the Kings of France Henri II, François II and Charles IX in Paris, was also a passionate bibliophile and collector of curiosities and ephemera. About 300 signed volumes originating from hiy library are still known to exist, only one tenth of which dated (Greengrass (2014), Desserrant les nœuds. François Rasse et les premières guerres de Religion. Médialité et interprétation contemporaine des premières guerres de Religion, 64-80). This makes the present copy one of only thirty dated books from the Rasse des Neux library. Greengrass (2014) mentions 1566 as the start of a second wave of acquisitions by Rasse, stopped abruptly the following year by the second war of religions. Interestingly, Rasse des Neux is also mentioned as a mineral collector in Wilson's census.

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