Pike Lane Opencut
Winster Moor, Derbyshire

Steve Uttley

In recent years, there have been few sites in Derbyshire which have yielded supergene mineral specimens. A small-scale working on Winster Moor, has however, during the last year provided some interesting material, the author having found good specimens of hemimorphite, cerussite and pyromorphite at this site.

Colour in Scottish Agates

Robin Field

This article offers some current ideas on the formation of agates and discusses the problem of the origins of their colour. The distribution of colour in agates in some of the main collecting area is outlined, and some of the many gaps in our knowledge of this and other aspects of agate genesis and occurrence are highlighted, with the hope that others may feel stimulated to discover new sites and formulate new ideas about this most fascinating of gemstones.

Bwlchglas Mine, Dyfed, Wales

Simon J. S. Hughes

Blwchglas Mine, although of little economic consequence, has come to the notice of mineralogists through the quality of pyromorphite specimens collected there in the late 1970s and early 1980's. This article gives a historical perspective on the mine from the early workings in the seventeenth century to its closure in 1923.

Alpine Quartz

Laurent Gautron

The European Alps have furnished many superb mineral specimens, including some of the finest quartz in existence. The search for quartz from the Alpine clefts, both for mineral specimens, and carving, stretches centuries into history. The wide variety of crystallographic habits and morphologies is a reflection of the different geological environments in which crystallisation has occurred.