The Perot Just Acquired a Rare, 2-Foot-Tall 'Alien Eye' Mineral, Named for Its Otherworldly Glow

[TexasTowelie]

The Eyes of Africa is the most important specimen of "alien eye" fluorite yet discovered, and until now, few have seen it.
Elliott Fine Minerals International


Visitors to the Perot Museum this week are among the first people in the world to lay eyes on a mineral that has a "cult-like following in the mineral collecting community," according to a press release by the museum of nature and science.

On Wednesday, the Perot unveiled Eyes of Africa, the largest and finest specimen of "alien eye" fluorite yet discovered. The Eyes of Africa was found in 2007 and spent two years undergoing cleaning. After that, its original owners, collectors Mark Kielbaso and Jurgen Tron, spent many more years debating where and when to debut it.

The specimen comes from a region of Namibia near the Erongo Mountains. The press release explains that 130 million years ago, a large volcano erupted in that area and has since produced a remarkable and wide variety of minerals — 70 in all.

Most prized are the fluorites, which form in unusual shapes compared with other fluorites, come in nearly ever color of the rainbow and are incredibly vivid. The color of the minerals is determined by whatever impurities were present as they were forming.

Read more: http://www.dallasobserver.com/arts/perot-museum-acquires-rare-mineral-with-cult-like-following-9659819

[MFM008]

1. Cool

I love geology...

[Tanuki]

2. Beautiful and other-worldly! I confess I was not familiar

with the Perot Museum but I followed the link in the Observer and it sounds like it is well worth a visit. I read a bit more and am glad that they are working hand in hand with the esteemed paleontologists at SMU....there are many in the public these days who need to see matter-of-fact yet engaging presentations about life that existed o earth millions of years ago!
http://blog.smu.edu/forum/2012/12/06/smu-fossils-expertise-to-be-an-ongoing-part-of-new-perot-museum/