Smithsonian Mineral Collection #1

The Smithsonian Museum of Natural History has a great mineral collection. Here's a few highlights from a 2023 visit. Lots of colorful eye candy in the form of large crystals, but also a very well-organized collection with a lot of educational content, where they have organized the collection according to crystal systems, chemistry, location, applications, and so much more. Unexpected highlights include more than one display where they have brought actual original mine structures into the display, including a huge chunk of a Bisbee, AZ mine, so that you can see what it is like to find these amazing goodies in their natural habitat. This video shows a tiny fraction of what is there. The whole museum covers a lot more than just minerals, and is worth a trip to see.