Danilov, A.A. Gemstones of
Amurskaya oblast [Samotsvety
Amurskoi oblasti]. Post Scriptum, 2000, 160 pp., ill.
The area of the Amurskaya oblast exceeds that of Arizona or Great
Britain. However, like in case of many regions of Russia and the world,
it is studied unevenly and insufficiently. Various mineral deposits are
known to occur here, gemstones included. Gold exploration revealed
magnificent agates in alluvium of the Nora and Burunda rivers long ago,
and in the 1980’s Burundinskoe color chalcedony deposit, the largest in
Rusia, was explored.
In 1981 Tokskoe chrysolite
placer was discovered. This deposit , as well as Kugdinskoe, are two
economic deposits known in Russia. Chrysolite is considered as a major
gemstone of the area. Photos of agates and other gems illustrate the
book.
A review of Canada-related minerals
Horváth,
Laszlo. (2003) Mineral Species Discovered in Canada and Species Named
after Canadians. Special Publications of
The Canadian Mineralogist, 6, 382 p.
Canada, one
of the world’s largest countries, during the course of the last 10 – 15
years joined the leadership in the new mineral discoveries at its
territory, a total of 206. Of these, a significant part derives from the
Mont Saint Hilarie Massif (41 species, as I. Pekov estimates), this key
mineralogical object of the 1990’s. It is not by chance Laszlo Horvath,
who was among the authors of a remarkable mineralogical description of
the Saint Hilarie, had issued this all-Canadian summary (cf.
Mineralogical Record, 1990, v. 21).
See
www.mineralogicalassociation.
ca for details
This annotated and illustrated
compendium focuses on the 206 mineral species discovered in Canada or
redefined from Canadian localities in the last 222 years. It also
highlights 30 minerals named after Canadians but discovered outside
Canada, and includes a section on obsolete names of mineral species
first described from Canadian localities. The book also gives a brief
historical overview of works documenting mineralogy in Canada from its
beginnings in 1752 to the present. Appendices covering the chronology of
mineral discoveries, individual type-localities, type-mineral specimens
and their repositories, chemical classification of type minerals, an
author index, and general references complete the book.
Review
of web-sites
www.fegi.ru The
Russian Far East website – from supergenic minerals to a famous actor.
New publications:
Yakhontova, L.K., and Zvereva,
V.P. Principles of supergenic mineralogy.
This important summary
systematizes data on 800 minerals (140 sulfate species, 115 arsenate,
115 oxide, etc.) from the oxidation zone of various mineral deposits of
the world, with an emphasis on tin deposits of the Russian Far East.
Supergenic effects caused by microorganisms are discussed. This site
presents on-line Russian version of the book, which hardcopy version
issue was quite small.
An image
index complementary to Igor V. Pekov’s book, Minerals First
Discovered on the Territory of Former Soviet Union (1998), is
introduced at
www.element51.com (SEM photos, drawings of crystals, and color
photos). An alphabetic list of minerals specifies page numbers where
images of minerals are placed.
Interesting!
Other
features of the site:
-
Papers on the diamond finds in the Russian Far East
(Shcheka, S.A. Diamonds in the Far East: Myths and reality; Zalishchak,
B.L. How the diamonds were searched for.)
-
Information in brief:
-
Gem and color stone deposits of the region,
-
Collection minerals,
-
Essays on the history of the region.
Ore deposit
discoveries and the mining history of the Dal’negorsk (now Tetyukhe)
area are related to Yuli I. Brinner (1849–1920), an outstanding mining
businessman and a mecenate; maybe, this is the first detailed
publication of his biography.
Boris Yu.
Brinner, his son, graduated from the Mining institute in St. Petersburg;
he published his work, Silver-and-lead mines of the Tetyukhe area, in
1915. His son of the first marriage, Yul Brinner, worked as a
photographer and the UN consultant, then was an employee of a TV
company. Still later he joined Mikhail Chekhov’s theater school to
become a professional actor. His starring in the Magnificent Seven made
him widely famous. The top of his career came to him in the theater; his
role in King and I brought Oscar in 1984.
The details are best presented
in Rock Brinner’s book, Yul, the Man Who Would Be King (1978).
On May 2, 1785, Anna Alexeevna Orlova was born (d. 1848), the
only daughter of the famous Count Alexey Orlov and one of the ten
richest ladies in Russia and abroad: in 1831 – 32 her property was
estimated as 40 million gold rubles (V.A. Kiprin). In particular, she
owned a manor in the Neskuchny Garden with a manege, the largest one in
Moscow. At that time aristocrats occasionally transformed their maneges
into ballrooms. This was the case in 1814, when she gave a grandiose
ball to celebrate the Russian victory over Napoleon and return of the
Russian army home. In 1832, the Countess sold her manor to Nicolas I,
the then Russian emperor. With time, she abandoned the society for
religious activities, donating huge sums of money to monasteries and
churches. Since 1934, A.E Fersman Mineralogical museum (RAS) moved from
Leningrad to Moscow has been located there.
On May 6, Marianna Borisovna Chistyakova was born, who
stays with A.E. Fersman Mineralogical museum (RAS) since the 1950’s(!).
She supervises the gem and color stone collection of the Museum.
On May 15, 1915,
John Sinkankas was born (died May 17, 2002), a famous gemologist and an
author of a fundamental book on North American gemstones, Emerald and
Other Beryls, this original encyclopedia, a magnificent course of
mineralogy for amateurs, and many other books. Mineral sinkakasite was
named in his honor.
As
http://www.palagems.com/sinkankas.htm
states: “…Pilot, author, bibliophile, bookbinder, collector, artist,
lapidary, historian, scholar – John Sinkankas was the epitome of the
Renaissance man.”
On May 17, 1936,
Lia Nikolayevna Kogarko, a academician of Russian Academy of Science and
a specialist in magmatism, ore deposition, and geochemistry, was born.
Mineral kogarkoite discovered in Colorado, USA, was named in her honor.
On May 18
Anatoly Nikolaevich Korobov was born, a pilot, designer, artist,
lapidary, collector, screenplay author for animated films, etc. For many
years he heads the Moscow friends of Mineralogy Club, being an organizer
and participant of the Wonder in Stone annual exhibition for
three decades. His scenery stone collection is a unique.
On May 20, 1936,
Nikolai Pavlovich Yushkin, a academician of Russian Academy of Science,
was born. He is a mineralogist (in particular, he deals with
biomineralogical problems) and a Director of the Geological Institute of
the Komi Scientific Center, Uralian Branch of RAS (Syktyvkar). During
the last two decades he heads studies on fundamental description of the
Uralian mineralogy. Mineral yushkinite was named in his honor.
On May 21, 1885,
Nikolay Alexeevich Smol’yaninov was born (died 1957), a Profesor of
mineralogy in the Moscow Geological Prospecting Institute since 1930 and
a head of the Mineralogical museum of the same institute during
1930–1957. He was among the top mineralogists and an author of a
Practical Guide on Mineralogy. Mineral smolyaninovite was named in his
honor.
On May 29, 1846,
Carl Fabergé was born, famous Russian jewelry.
On June 6, 1835,
a 480-t nest of malachite was found in the Nadeznaya mine near Nizhniy
Taghil, Middle Urals. The nest carried a 40-t monolith, the largest one
ever found in Russia.
On June 13, 1955,
a field team headed by Yu.I. Khabardin discovered a kimberlite pipe Mir,
the second known then in the world and the largest bedrock diamond
deposit outside South Africa.
