Children are often interested in stones. Some rocks are shiny or smooth and nice to hold in the palm of your hand, while others appear to be sharp-edged and rough.
Collecting minerals is fun! Picture by Rolv Dahl, NGUSome people keep their interest in rocks and minerals for the rest of their lives.
Some mineral collectors probably dream of finding gold and becoming extremely rich, but unfortunately, this happens very seldom. Despite this, mineral wealth continues to hold a fascination for many people.
4000 minerals
On Planet Earth as a whole, almost 4000 minerals have been described, but only 7-8 minerals constitute most of the mass in the majority of rocks in Norway. Together with the Norwegian Museum of Natural History, NGU is working on an online inventory of known Norwegian mineral occurrences. This will probably be launched in the beginning of 2008.
For a global mineral record, we recommend taking a look at the website: www.mindat.org.
Geological club
If you have taken an interest in mineral collecting, you might consider joining a geological club in order to get started. The club members can offer good advice on how to collect; and the clubs arrange meetings, excursions and mineral trade fairs.
For information on Norwegian mineral clubs, we recommend a look at the Norwegian non-professional geologists society: NAGS.
Published: 21. January 2008