Sometimes, while working, I like to use coins as 'scales' in my photographs... Here are some beautiful calcite crystals (v. spar) on saddle dolomite, from the Pine Point past producing mine, Northwest Territories. Here is a figure from one of my graduate student's recent publication. He annotated one of my field photos... I try to use a clean and shiny coin, and depending on how much change is in my pocket, with the present date. A great example of nailhead striae, taken on a recently deglaciated outcrop at the margin of the Athabasca Glacier, Jasper National Park. Lastly, shell fragments from a 300,000 year old raised marine strandline, Tierra del Fuego, Argentina, using one of the local coins.
Yes, I am a Quaternary geologist.... makes numismatics and error coin collecting much easier having an XRF in my lab, and access to a quantitative SEM...
Very nice. I especially love the first picture, the center of the bimetallic specimen goes nicely with the minerals (?) while the outer ring contrasts them.
Lovely!! Be sure to update us with more pictures every now and then! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
As requested, I will put in a few more photos below!! Given your background Amanda, I should be photographing my raw crystals, native metals and gemstones with coins as well!!
Here are some textbook climbing ripples, in a sand sequence. This one is for the ladies - a hot pink glaciolacustrine silt bed, contained between clay beds. Canadian 2005 commemorative Alberta 25c, for scale. Of course, glaciolacustine beds need to come from glacial sediments, so here is a (dried) pink diamict dropstone, in a glaciolacustrine silts. Tapered into a teardrop shape from being transported subaqueously. Some laminated sand beds, with microfaults. Soft-sediment deformation in sand, with microfolds.
Oxidation (Fe-staining) crossing bedding planes in sand (from groundwater). Textbook example of subglacial (lodgement) till, with joint planes and fissility from overconsolidation. Another till photo, fine-grained source rock. Clast-rich diamict, using a 2005 Terry Fox loon dollar for scale. Lower contact of till, with Cretaceous shale bedrock with native sulphur staining on the joint surfaces. This one has the Canada 2005 Victory 5-cent commemorative. Another till-shale contact photo, with the Alberta commemorative 25c.
Some bright and shiny stuff (not the coins). This is high grade Pb-Zn ore from the former Pine Point mine, Northwest Territories. The shiny grey stuff is galena and the brown stuff is sphalerite. Canadian loon dollar for scale. A very fascinating form of sphalerite mineralization. The concentric circular forms and arcuate bands you see are botryoidal sphalerite. Honey-brown sphalerite crystals, which formed on saddle dolomite. This sample currently is on display in my office now.
That is too cool! I love that you've found a unique way to mix your two passions. The photo's a great. Now you'll have to give us all a geology lesson!
Found a couple more with coins in them. This first one is a metamorphic gneiss from the Canadian Shield, with large almandine (garnet) crystals, Canadian 5-cent for scale. This is a quartzite boulder that I found on the southern shore of Great Slave Lake, with hematite (iron) banding. Perhaps some tattoo artists are inspired from rocks?? Canadian 10-cent, with the famous Bluenose, for scale.
