A closer look at small specimens
Some specimens ask you to pull up a chair. From across the room they may look fairly ordinary, but bring them closer and there's something worth spending time with: a group of small crystals, a change in their shape, or a second mineral tucked into a hollow. For those who enjoy this side of collecting, a little box can hold enough interest for a very pleasant afternoon.
Thumbnail and micromount collecting became part of my own interest after I joined the Western Suburbs Lapidary Club in 1981. My best find in the club library was a little pink softcover book: The Complete Guide to Micromounts: Minerals for Everyone, written by Milton L. Speckels and published in 1965. That book sent me down the micromount rabbit hole, never to return! It is a lovely reminder of what a club library can set in motion.
These small specimens offer a different way of looking at minerals. A thumbnail is a small specimen; a micromount is prepared to be appreciated under magnification. The terms aren't interchangeable, and a small specimen doesn't have to go under a microscope to be enjoyable. Sometimes a hand lens is enough to reveal what caught another collector's eye.
Here in Australia, we have plenty of material that rewards that closer attention. The tiny minerals accompanying a more obvious crystal can be interesting in their own right. Rather than looking only at the largest feature, take time to see what else is present. Keep any identification tentative until there is enough evidence; finding something unfamiliar is an invitation to learn, not a reason to give it an exciting name straight away.
Magnet Mine in Tasmania provides a useful example. Mineral Resources Tasmania describes small chalcophanite crystals occurring with cerussite there. Chalcophanite may be an unfamiliar name, but the point is simple: a specimen can contain details that are easy to miss when our attention goes to the more conspicuous mineral. Looking closely opens up another part of an Australian locality we may think we already know.
Small specimens can also make collecting practical when space is limited. You might enjoy a carefully arranged drawer rather than a large display cabinet. There is pleasure in being able to sit down, choose a few pieces and compare them. Their labels still deserve room, and the specimens still need secure, suitable housing. Small size doesn't make a fragile crystal any less fragile.
It doesn't necessarily make a specimen inexpensive either. Some small pieces are highly sought after. But a rewarding afternoon with minerals needn't depend on an expensive addition to the collection. A closer examination of something you already own, or a shared look through another collector's microscope, may give you quite enough to talk about.
There are people in our Australian mineralogical societies who take particular pleasure in this sort of shared study. The Mineralogical Society of Victoria, for example, has a Micro Group. If you haven't tried looking at minerals this way, asking a local club about opportunities to have a look is a sensible beginning. You can find out whether it appeals before deciding what equipment you might want.
You can also join in from home through The Micromount Club on YouTube. It is an international group that welcomes everyone, with a new video each month prepared by the group's members. Whether you're just beginning or have spent years looking down a microscope, there is plenty to enjoy and learn. It is a lovely way for Australian collectors and friends overseas to share their interests, wherever they happen to live.