World mining of precious stones and semi-precious stones, deposits. Gems of Russia
At great depths, under great pressure and temperature, minerals of amazing beauty - rubies - are born. Their formation varies depending on the specific deposit where rubies are mined, but most often it occurs at a temperature of 450 degrees and at a depth of up to 30 km. As a result of transformation, sedimentary rocks turn into metamorphic rock.
Despite the fact that ruby deposits theoretically exist on all continents except Antarctica, the extraction of the precious gem is not carried out everywhere. The most famous ruby deposits at the moment are located in southeast Asia (Burma), on the island of Sri Lanka (Ceylon) and in Thailand.
Burmese rubies are an undeniable ideal; they are superior to other specimens in quality and beauty, and accordingly, they are more expensive. It was there that the largest and most famous ruby was discovered at one time, whose weight reached four hundred carats. True, in its original state it did not survive to this day - it was split into three parts.
But now, unfortunately, the Burmese ruby deposits are almost completely depleted. It’s not surprising, since for so many years they have been the source of the best gems in the world! The most promising direction where ruby is currently mined is India. The famous Kashmir mines in India, which supply the jewelry market with the best sapphires, can also provide the best rubies. Red rubies of excellent quality have already been discovered there, and the deposits of the island of Sri Lanka have already become famous for their rare star gems.
Russian gems are known all over the world. Many deposits are unique in volume and content. The main occurrence area is the central and northeastern parts of the country. The most famous and developed deposits are located in the Urals, in the Yamalo-Nenets District, Chelyabinsk Region (Norilsk). Ekaterinburg and other cities of the Sverdlovsk region, the Baikal region (Irkutsk and Chita regions, Buryatia) are famous for their precious stones.
The first Russian diamonds were found in the Urals in 1829. Mining was carried out using artisanal methods; very often, precious stones were found by accident while washing gold-bearing sand. In less than 100 years, 250 diamonds weighing up to 25 carats were mined in the Urals. Ural diamonds have amazing purity and transparency. Later, deposits were discovered in the western regions of the Urals.
Diamond mining in Siberia began only in the 50s of the twentieth century. The largest kimberlite pipes were discovered in Yakutia. This made Russia one of the world leaders in diamond mining.
Yekaterinburg and the cities of the Sverdlovsk region amaze with the variety of minerals. What semi-precious and precious stones are mined here? Ekaterinburg is part of the so-called Ural region. The variety of minerals mined here is simply amazing: garnets (red jewelry and grossulars), malachite, rauchtopaz. Ural topazes are very famous - red, blue and purple. Ekaterinburg values wine-yellow stone most of all.
The regional center and surrounding areas are famous for deposits of rare minerals. Verdelite and rhodonite are mined in the Urals. Yekaterinburg is the center of one of the oldest mining regions in the country. The whole world knows photographs depicting Ural gems. At the same time, only part of the explored mineral reserves is currently being developed. Emeralds supplied by Yekaterinburg have a rich green color and high transparency.
Recently the news was announced that a new gemstone had been found in the Sverdlovsk region - Mariinskite. The mineral is slightly inferior to diamond in hardness and brilliance.
Besides, Yekaterinburg supplies the world with amethysts and aquamarines. Red and black jaspers are mined in the Sverdlovsk region. Black tourmalines - schorls - have been explored and actively mined.
The territory of the Urals is huge and rich in minerals. Bazhov sang the Ural gems in his works. No photo can convey the full brilliance of the precious stones mined in the Urals. Minerals are highly valued by jewelers all over the world. 
The largest deposits of emeralds and alexandrites are being developed in the Urals. The richest occurrence of high-quality charoite is also located in the Urals. Moonstone is mined in the Chelyabinsk region. Adularia from the Urals often contains inclusions of gold sand. Almost transparent moonstone was found on the Kola Peninsula and in the Subpolar Urals.
The area around Lake Baikal is known for deposits of well-formed topaz. Almost all Russian jade is mined in Buryatia. Its main deposits are located relatively close to Lake Baikal. Therefore, stone mining is carried out with care so as not to harm the lake’s ecosystem. Russian jade has a variety of colors; there are even black specimens.
A little to the west of Baikal, bright red garnets - pyropes - are mined from deposits of the Bartoy group. The deposits of the Irkutsk region in the Baikal region provide the country with amethysts, light blue lapis lazuli, aquamarines and pink-red rhodonites. Tourmaline mining is carried out not far from Lake Baikal. In the Baikal region, pearl-colored moonstone is mined.
Norilsk is famous, first of all, for its vast areas of iron ore, natural gas and oil. In addition, Norilsk is famous for precious and semi-precious stones. In the vicinity of the city and surrounding areas, jadeite is mined. Norilsk has deposits of high quality greenish-yellow olivine.
Jewelers know Norilsk as a place where very rare stones are mined. Thanks to large reserves of aluminum and iron ore, Norilsk and the Krasnoyarsk Territory are the owners of pumpellyite deposits. Among other collectible minerals that Norilsk mines is moyukite. Norilsk is known for its large amount of zeolites. Prehnite stands out among them. The mineral is believed to have medicinal properties.
Norilsk is one of the places where rare light yellow stilbite was discovered. As for the name, it is Greek and means “brilliance”. The stone has an increased shine that cannot be conveyed in the photo. Recently, Norilsk began supplying the market with new semi-precious stones - xonotlites. They are white in color with black or gray streaks.
Nizhny Novgorod is not particularly rich in mineral resources. On an industrial scale, Novgorod mines dolomite, clay and sand. The surprising news is that Nizhny Novgorod can extract diamonds from the ground. The regional governor announced this. The area with a diamond-bearing pipe owned by Nizhny Novgorod is small. But geological exploration continues. Perhaps in the future the city will become one of the centers for the production of industrial diamonds. Nizhny Novgorod maintains the glory of the homeland of magnificent stone carvers. The products of local craftsmen are known throughout the world. 
Makhachkala and the entire Dagestan region are known for deposits of iron ore and oil. Precious stones are quite rare here. But Makhachkala has some reserves of rock crystal, chalcedony, agate and carnelian. Jewelry art is very developed in the region. Kubachi, Makhachkala, Derbent are famous for their masters of glyptics - artistic stone cutting.
No significant deposits of precious stones have been discovered in the Oryol region, but there are large reserves of raw materials for building materials. Far beyond the borders of the Oryol region, the healing stones of the village of Andreevka are known. Large boulders have bizarre shapes. Each stone has special properties: it treats diseases, helps in personal life or study.
The Volgograd region also cannot boast of gems. But there are famous mounds in Surovikino. These are accumulations of large blocks of sandstone that retain heat all year round. Many tourists come to Surovikino, having heard about the healing properties of local stones.
Crimea
Many regions of Crimea (Kerch, Bakhchisarai, Feodosia) have deposits of precious and ornamental stones. Crimea is characterized by limestone and shale rocks. Carnelian, amethyst (pink and purple), onyx and opal are extracted from the depths of Crimea.
The variety of colors of Crimean agates is surprising. Black and white stones with stripes of pink, blue, red, brown and gray are mined here. Bakhchisaray and the Kerch region of Crimea are famous for their large reserves of jet. These are black petrified branches and tree trunks that look like stone. Many Crimean souvenirs are made from this gem.
On the territory of Kara-Dag there are deposits of rock crystal, heliotrope, opal, chalcedony and jasper. But this part of Crimea is a protected area, so stone mining is not carried out. Rare milky opals are found on the peninsula (Kara-Dag, Bakhchisaray, Sudak). Citrines are often found in rocks.
Researchers of Crimea found in its lands minerals unique to this region. The most famous - kerchenite, mithridatite, alushtite and bosporite - were named according to the places of discovery. Bakhchisarai, Fiolent, Karadag are rich in jaspers of various colors. The most typical for Crimea is red and yellow jasper with colored inclusions.
The whole world knows the decorative stones of Crimea - Black Sea traces, marble, diabase. Feodosia, Sevastopol, Bakhchisaray have deposits of rock crystal. Large-scale mining of semi-precious raw materials on the peninsula is limited, since most of Crimea belongs to protected and reserved areas.
Collection of ornamental stones and minerals - amazonite, charoite, quartz massif, etc.
Collection of stones and minerals - a product of the extraction of kimberlite components
Mining work in deposits and hazardous industries
Western Caves on the Kola Peninsula, Russia (RF, CIS). In the Western Cave area there are deposits and occurrences of collectible minerals known far beyond the borders of our country. Amazonite and kyanite, garnet and staurolite have long become the hallmark of these places. Examples of these stones are easily recognizable and highly prized by collectors and stone lovers alike. It's difficult to get through - there are no roads. Author of the photo (2010).
In the upper reaches of the river A military tractor is stuck in the swamps - we tie a log to the tracks and try to get through
The low northern sun and low rain clouds surprised us almost daily with beautiful rainbows
A rare manifestation of volcanic undestroyed batholiths - the crater of an extinct volcano (gases)
Albitized and amazonitized gneiss from contact with a pegmatite vein. Ornamental
Minerals are dangerous and are subject to mandatory testing for toxic and radioactive inclusions, which are not included in the category of jewelry and ornamental stones. On the southern slope of the Serpovidny ridge, along the contact with the intrusion of alkaline granites, there is a chain of dangerous, highly radioactive pegmatite veins, including green granite (feldspar) and amazonite. Vein No. 1 is distinguished by associated finds of gadolinite crystals and large deposits of danalite (a mineral from the helvin group). They are not included in the semi-precious categories, are not classified as jewelry and semi-precious stones, and their sale at stone exhibitions for non-professionals is prohibited. Harm to health.
At the world's largest industrial Amazonite mine. This is the famous Ploskaya Mountain
Original output of tri-color kimberlite - in the form of green amazonite (feldspar)
Eastern face (rock outcrop) of a granite feldspathic pegmatite amazonite quarry. The finest specimens of monazite (a cerium-bearing crystalline component of granites, extremely radioactive in crystals) and xenotime, as well as droplets of native Bi (bismuth) in quartz surrounded by a rim of rare sillenite, were also mined here. Crusts of churchite-(Y, yttrium, very dangerous - a satellite of uranium and thorium, fergusonite), sprinkled with crystals of yellow-orange wulfenite (lead molybdate), also come from here. Radioactive.
Originally colored with lead ions in bluish-green and green color, heterogeneous
color due to inclusions of white and yellowish albite - granite (feldspar, pegmatite) - amazonite
Green granite pegmatite (feldspar) is checked with a dosimeter for monazites and other radiation
A block zone of pegmatite, rare metal mineralization is associated here with albite veinlets.
Also visible in this photo are huge plate-like crystals of black zinnwaldite (mica). This
- dark lithium-iron mica, isolated - aluminosilicate. Occurs in tin-bearing veins
Gorgeous green amazonite may contain a stone of oblivion and a strong poison - red cinnabar
If a stone contains an admixture of red cinnabar, it is absorbed when worn on the body and poisons the brain
Tons of Amazonite, mined but not exported, await dosimetric and chemical testing
On the side of some amazonite veins, white quartz and its secretions are visible - these are hydrothermal veins
Poisonous volcanic gases come from open volcanic batholiths (hidden and visible)
Amazonite and rainbow. Ploskaya Mountain, Keivy, Kola Peninsula, Russian Federation (CIS). Photo: M. Moiseev.
Placers - the world's largest Amazonite deposit (Keyvy, 09/21/2012)
http://www.tourism.ru/phtml/users/get_report.php?769
The richest deposits of amazonite are on the Kola Peninsula of the Russian Federation (CIS). Here, in the very center of the peninsula, in the Keivsky tundras, there are concentrations of the legendary stone, Amazonite pegmatites, unprecedented in scale and quality. The richest deposit is Gora Ploskaya, from which the best ornamental amazonite in the world is extracted - grass-green, blue-green, similar to Ilmensky, and bluish, like turquoise. And at another deposit - Mount Parusnaya - there are rare, beautiful, well-formed prismatic crystals of amazonite ranging in length from several centimeters to 1.5 m, and among them are real wonders - druses of small, well-formed crystals of emerald green color. They can decorate many museums around the world.
Amazonite deposit - significant reserves of large-block amazonite granites have been identified
Based on photographs from the Internet forum http://ru-gems.livejournal.com
Despite the wide distribution and diversity of granites in nature, their green varieties - amazonite granites - are relatively rare. Such granites were discovered in Transbaikalia and Kazakhstan and immediately attracted the attention of artists and designers due to their bluish-green color, due to the content of green feldspar - amazonite. Mongolian nature, creating its amazing gem creations, gave preference to stones of red and yellowish-golden tones. Mongolian amazonite granite resembles its Kazakh “brother”, and this strengthened the hopes of geologists. And here we are on the Abdar granite massif, stretching over several square kilometers among the flat wormwood steppe. Here, on the low, smooth hills, Amazonite granite hides somewhere, hiding under the same green and lush grass cover. Based on photographs from the Internet forum http://http://mirmineralov.ru/.
Amazonite granite - inclusions of green amazonite (left) in the rock
At the foot of Serpovidny, on the banks of the Keiva River, scientists from the Geological Institute of the KSC RAS from the city of Apatity (RF, CIS) have been staying for many years. This is kimberlite. Throughout Serpovidnoe, numerous outcrops of quartz veins are exposed, mainly confined to the muscovite quartzite unit. Many of them were opened by ditches; testing for gold was carried out here and technological samples of quartz were taken (for jewelry).
The slope appears to be covered with snow - in fact, these are massifs of white quartz (kimberlite)
Numerous outcrops of quartz veins are exposed throughout Serpovidnoye - quartz is decorative
When a rotating meteorite fireball hits the ground and passes through the earth's crust
(kimberlite) layers of quartz were thrown out of the ground onto the surface (stone tornado)
A white stone disguised by a plant is a shiksha plant, also known as crowberry, crowberry, etc.
It may even turn out to be ice (from water) - in the Northern latitudes there are deposits of native ice
Short stop at Mount Mica. The expedition has passed, the path to the “mainland” lies ahead
The all-terrain vehicle awaits eerie impassable swamps before civilization, and this is the “Hound of the Baskervilles”
Under the feet of geologists there remain interesting stones and minerals that still need to be selected...
Staurolite and chiastolite- rare decorative minerals that do not require special jewelry finishing. They are beautiful as they are in nature. Amazonite and kyanite, garnet and staurolite have long become the hallmark of Western Cave (Kola Peninsula). After working at Tahlintuaiva, the path lay to the southeast, to those places where the best collection specimens of staurolite in the world are found. Mica schists containing staurolite come to the surface in the form of a strip tens of kilometers long, stretching along the entire Keiva ridge, but only in the Semiostrovye region does staurolite form high-quality collection samples. Here it is found in the form of well-formed, prismatic crystals, the size of which reaches 10-15 cm.
The crystals grow together, forming regular cross-shaped and star-shaped intergrowths. More often in Keivy (RF, CIS) you can find an “oblique cross”, which in outline resembles the “St. Andrew’s” flag of Russia (loved in Ukraine, CIS - Greek Catholicism, Athos, Greece, EU), finds of staurolite intergrowths in the form of " direct Christian cross" (Orthodox church of the Russian Federation (CIS) - Trinity-Sergius Lavra, Zagorsk, Moscow region, and Belarus, CIS - a famous country of swamps and Christian priests). They are loved in the USA. Less common are tees of staurolite crystals - “snowflakes” (loved in Central Asia, the CIS - the mountains and glaciers of the Pamirs and Tien Shan, “The World roof, foot of Death”, Khorog, Tajikistan , Central Asia, CIS).
The joy of the first finds knows no bounds! Straight Christian cross.
Staurolite tees (“snowflakes”) - they are loved in the Pamirs
But the rarest type of twins is a natural fusion, which does not yet have an official name. The outline of this rare fusion resembles the symbol of the Chinese Sun, jokingly nicknamed by the prospectors “Loparsky”. With its unusual appearance, it immediately stands out from other staurolite counterparts. One of the rays is developed completely normally, but the second crystal is “broken” and is symmetrically displaced relative to the middle of the intergrowth in different directions. Usually during a trip it is possible to find several “Lapp Suns”, which are highly valued among knowledgeable collectors.
Blocks of muscovite shales are exposed in the roadbed along Dlinnoe
with large staurolite crosses. But to obtain a sample of staurolite from such a rock
almost impossible, the slate is too dense. In the center is the “Lopar Sun”
The best examples of collectible staurolite are found in the ruins of mica schists. When mined, they look untidy; most often they turn out to be covered from the surface with a crust of yellow-brown clay, which does not even allow one to discern the outlines of the joint. Of course, such material is a raw material for subsequent processing. To refine the found raw materials and turn them into samples, you will have to spend a lot of time and effort. Unfortunately, this is not always possible for beginning stone lovers. Usually, after multi-stage and sophisticated preparation, the clay and partially mica rock, which hides the mineral intergrowths, are finally removed from the crosses. This processing of staurolite is an entire art (you must not break the staurolite), the secrets of which are known to a narrow circle of specialists, and they prefer not to talk about the methods and secrets of the work.
A radical outcrop of staurolite shales in the bed of a dry stream. Specifically to the eluvial
deposits at the outcrops of this formation on the surface and are associated with the manifestation of collection
staurolites Semiostrovye. Metamorphosed basaltic volcanic units
Staurolites on Semiostrovie are mined from rocks where they are closely mixed
fragments of amphibolites, staurolite shales, sand and clay. At times this breed is loose and
it is easily dug with a shovel, and in other cases it is tightly cemented with iron hydroxides.
Sand and clay are separated on a sieve, and the coarse fraction is then sorted by hand.
There is no mechanization when searching for staurolite, and the main tool remains the hands and eyes of the prospector.
With staurolite samples, heavy, rounded gray pebbles (uranium) are found on the sieve.
The staurolite on the left is similar to the Maltese Cross - Western European Catholics, Vatican (EU)
Raskolov such a “round”, it is easy to be convinced that this is a radial concretion of a needle-shaped
kyanite, dark-colored with inclusions of carbonaceous matter. Jewelry stone.
Therefore, if you come across an attractive example of a staurolite “cross”, know that it has come a long and difficult way before becoming a worthy exhibit of the collection. As a sad result, it can be noted that the old staurolite mining sites in Keivy have now become depleted. Stone mining is reminiscent of hard labor in Spain, the EU (Spain - “the country of slaves, the country of masters”, convicts of the Middle Ages in the city of Almaden on cinnabar, the west of the European continent), with increased nutrition. And given the cost of operating the all-terrain vehicle and going to work, we have to admit that staurolite samples will become more expensive and become increasingly rare in mineralogical collections. Fans of staurolite take all samples, incl. even “sticks” and “singles”.
The long ridge is also the site of the finds kyanite paramorphosis on andalusite crystals. These paramorphoses inherited the cross-shaped pattern of inclusions of carbonaceous matter (antimony sulfide - stibnite) in the primary crystals of andalusite, which is why they are also called chiastolites. Although the term chiastolite refers to andalusite crystals. This is an object of pilgrimage for Catholic monks and clergy of Vatican City (EU), further jewelry processing of these chiastoliths is possible (grinding, polishing, jewelry cuts, balls, etc.). They appreciate the design of the Christian Western European cross (similar to the Maltese one, with flared ends).
Chiastolite is found everywhere on the top of the Long Ridge, any burrow (kimberlite)
leads to the discovery of several dozen samples. True, a high-quality cross is obtained
when splitting, not every paramorphosis. Kyanite - jewelry stone ("Kashmir sapphire")
Freshly split paramorphoses have a pale pink color, but under the influence of the sun
When exposed to light, this color disappears, and the chiastolites become white (they are called “nuns”).
Scattered fragments of the original rock with curved crystals of dark kyanite lie on the side of the road.
In combination with chiastolites they are sometimes called “monks” (Vatican) - strange drawings
Charoite and other rare minerals from the Murun massif in Siberia, Yakutia, Russia (RF, CIS). The Murunsky massif was discovered in the 50s of the last century, and then in the 60s the Sosnovsky expedition began work here to assess uranium-thorium ore occurrences. Large accumulations of radioactive metals have been found - these are accumulations of charoite and their components. The trees are crooked and have the shape of “hydras” - snakes creeping along the ground. Nothing grows (Hercules, Hercules). Hiking for charoite - an ornamental purple stone similar to amethyst. Author of the photo (1997).
The road approaches Towsonite Hill. There are potassium-enriched level II kimberlite rocks here
(dry, but there are uranium crystals): synnyrites, yakutites, leucite syenites. This place is also famous
finds of tausonite crystals, potassium bathysite and large allocations of kalsilite.
Maly Murun - buildings above the portal of the exploration adit in the upper reaches of the Davan stream.
Pronounced kimberlite walls (multi-colored rocks) and charoite outcrops
The Korennaya site is considered a nature reserve - approximately in this place, dug in by a ditch
and fence, charoite was found for the first time - it may have radioactive components
Radioactive charoite warehouse in the village. Ditmar. Once upon a time, blocks of charoitites were brought here
with an increased admixture of the thorium-containing mineral stisiite and other radiation
The formation of charoite took place in an active tectonic environment - an indisputable fact
Huge blocks of charoite are dragged to Vislopolovka from the headwaters of the Davan stream to the village,
and here with a stationary compressor they drill with rotary hammers into pieces of 70-100 kg
Preliminary cleaning and sorting of extracted samples. Most of them are aegirine
black “suns” and black inclusions in bright lilac-violet charoite rock
Pyroxenes (silicates): aegirine (a companion of charoite). A characteristic mineral of both intrusive and effusive alkaline rocks. It is also found in alkaline granites (accumulates radioactive substances) and some crystalline shales. The color is dark green, turning into black-green. Crystal shape. Columnar, needle-shaped. Radioactive impurities actively accumulate - in charoite (checking with a dosimeter is strictly necessary).
Outcrops of light-colored charoite rocks at the Grozovoy site. It is famous for its large crystals
titanium deliite - in nests of greenish coarse-grained microcline (this is granite).
Crooked pine trees are visible behind (on the left) - a sign of the proximity of radioactive uranium (impurity)
The only tokkoite vein in the world in the bedrock at the Magistralny site.
This rare mineral has not been found anywhere else on Earth. There is lilac charoite
The "Old" site is a large and explored charoite deposit. Charoite bodies occur parallel to the slope
kimberlite (locally) at shallow depths, most of the reserves are of ornamental grades.
A dangerous large-scale project on Murun - the extraction of a technological sample of strontium-barium carbonatites
for the Kuznetsk Metallurgical Plant (radioactive strontium and possible celestine)
Outcrop of benstonite carbonatites (outburst), although unaltered benstonite was not found at Murun.
Satellites of kimberlite - such a black vein may turn out to be arsenic and arsenopyrite (poison)
Expedition Lovozero-Khibiny- Kola Peninsula, Russia (RF, CIS). The “Casket” and “Palette” veins, pegmatites of the “Koashva” region and other “pearls of the subsoil” of the Kola Peninsula. (September 2007). An ornamental stone is an aesthetically pleasing mineral, not hazardous to health, quartz hardness (7 on the Mohs scale and higher) and looks good in souvenirs and small crafts - boxes, candlesticks, beads, tableware, inserts in jewelry, etc.
A huge crystal of chkalovite in massive ussingite. Pegmatite body - "Box".
Very rich mineral assemblage of the aegirine zone and ussingite pegmatite core.
In the host rock mass there are gas cavities and drusy voids, as well as crystals
A small block of ussingite, incidentally found in the dump of a kimberlite quarry, turned out to be filled with
rare minerals. All the most interesting minerals were found in its fragments (along the way)
Elmwood Mine- a legendary mine in Tennessee, USA (America). Here is the town of Carthage, in the vicinity of which mines were excavated, revealing an ore-bearing horizon in the dense limestones of the Lower Carboniferous (Cretaceous). Elmwood is located in Tennessee, USA. For many years it served as a source of collection samples of sphalerite, fluorite and calcite. As a result of drilling operations to search for oil, data were obtained about increased zinc contents in one of the limestone horizons. Included are decorative materials (large standards).
The deposit was opened by several vertical and one inclined shaft (narrowly localized tornado-like, reminiscent of a tornado and the trunk of a blood clot - kimberlite). The ore rises through a vertical shaft (Almaden type of cinnabar mining, Spain, EU, classic geological mining), and equipment and personnel work through an inclined shaft (type - water well, Kharkov, forestry within the city, Forest Park, gorge). It was this circumstance that was especially relevant, that you could board a vehicle on the surface and get to your workplace. And the depth of the mine is decent, about 600 meters - there is hydraulic pumping of water.
Entry is carried out using the kimberlite type, an inclined tunnel-route in the rock (“serpentine”)
Movement along an inclined shaft is always one-way and mine personnel communicate
with each other by radio, so as not to collide in a bottleneck on a steep slope of kimberlite
Not very deep in the mine, on the wall of the ore chamber, buildings were visible in the ore layer
stromatolites, excellent preservation and impressive size (fossil plants, pseudostems)
Rounded “trunks” (in cross-section) are surrounded by relic bitumen and jet (ornamental coal)
Massive (in relation to a person’s height) ornamental material - for a box, etc.
Stromatolites are a rocky mass formation of layers of calcareous material and sediment formed by the abundant growth of blue-green algae in water bodies: this feature of the structures dates back to the Precambrian period of time (Vendian - 580-680 million years. The oldest invertebrates, shellfish, the first plants - algae The beginning of organic life is in the sea!). In the slang of prospectors, such tree-like structures in the shape of tree trunks bear the Biblical name “Noah’s Ark.”
Cambrian period - 500-580 million years - Trilobites, brachiopods, algae. Life is at sea! Paleozoic era (about 500-580 million years ago). Ordovician period - Graptolites, brachiopods, trilobites. The first vertebrates (shelled fish). Seaweed. Silurian period - 400-440 million years - Graptolites, corals, brachiopods, trilobites. The first land plants. Devonian period - 345-400 million years - Bivalves, ammonites, brachiopods, corals, crinoids, trilobites, cartilaginous and bony fish. The first amphibians and insects. Vascular spore plants. The first ferns, the first land animals. Permian period - 225-275 million years - Brachiopods, bivalves, ammonites, four-rayed corals, trilobites, lizards, scaly fish. Conifers, for the first time - ginkgo.
Jasper and complex rock outcrops by the sea (Feolent Vangeli, 04/07/2007)
Based on photographs from the Internet catalog http://photoshare.ru/album405680.html
On the river Pinega. A trip to one of the most beautiful rivers in the Arkhangelsk region. European part, Russia (RF, CIS). Flint from the vicinity of the village. Priluk. Those rare stone lovers who come to these parts almost completely “clean up” the Pinega beach. Interesting samples of kimberlite may be found in the pebbles. Having passed the village. Pinega, crossed the Kuloi Canal and stopped in the village of Kulogory. Here the land part of the route ends. The village is located on the right steep bank of the Pinega River, composed of gypsum-limestone rocks. In Kulogory we drove up to a rather shallow channel of the Pinega and assembled the catamaran. Further along the river.
Toroma is a remote village that can be reached by land from the village. Pinega. Further south, there are about 20 km left to the celestines and dangerous stones. Along the way we see the domes of churches and holy monasteries - and we reach pink-red containing dangerous toxic impurities (with poisonous red cinnabar - mercury sulfide) and white gypsum selenite.
The dilapidated wooden temple in the village of Chikinskaya looks impressive - Russia
Before your eyes is Ershov’s famous fairy tale “The Little Humpbacked Horse” (illustrations)
Find on the Pinega River (RF, CIS) - a sample of ring patterned flint from beach pebbles
The peculiarity of pinkish gypsum (selenite) is the possible content of red cinnabar, a poison for the brain
On the beach they can fry fish from the river and throw plaster of Paris with cinnabar - fainting, oblivion, poisons
Dangerous selenite - flood and rain waters washed the cinnabar out of it, no water is taken near it
If during rain such a stone gets wet and forms puddles of water, they will contain poisonous cinnabar
Birkachan deposit in the Magadan region, Far East, Russia (RF, CIS). Birkachan is one of the deposits in which gold and silver are concentrated in ore form. Maybe red cinnabar is a sulfide and ore of mercury. The Birkachan Au-Ag deposit is located on the Omolon Highlands, in the northeast of the Magadan region. The deposit is mined by open pit mining. The low-grade ore is planned to be processed right there, next to the quarry, using cyanide heap leaching. The rich ore is transported by dump trucks to the Kubaka mining and processing plant, located 45 km from Birkachan, for processing using vat cyanide leaching using CIP (coal in pulp) technology. The deposit belongs to the gold-chalcedony-quartz formation. Author of the photo (2010).
The Birkachan deposit is mined using open pit mining. Kimberlite stone dumps
Dangerous “gifts of nature” in the dumps - possible red cinnabar (traces of burgundy color, poison)
Water flowing from such red and other soluble stones in the rain is a killer (brain amnesia)
Cinnabar is used to treat brain pathologies, taken orally - under electric shock (lightning strike)
Hundreds of thousands of tons of such ornamental material are piled up in dumps and road embankments. Size
ornamental onyx reaches 50 cm or more. May contain red cinnabar (traces)
Chalcedony. Birkachan deposit, Magadan region, Russia, CIS. Photo: A.S. Klepikov.
Tersky coast of the White Sea- region of Fish and Amethyst, Murmansk region, Russia (RF, CIS). This is the southernmost part of the Kola Peninsula, which has a milder and warmer climate (in the North of the Russian Federation, CIS). About 60 km from the village. Umbana walks with. Olenitsa, located on the banks of the river of the same name. The occurrence of glendonites, which are also called “White Sea flyers,” is located outside the village outskirts and is exposed during low tides on a low clayey shore. Today scientists have proven that glendonites arose incl. when replacing calcite ikaite crystals CaCO3*6H2O, a mineral that is stable in very cold water. They form clumps that look like mineral “hedgehogs,” with sharp spikes of crystals protruding from the center in all directions.
Glendonites are found not only in the White Sea, their finds are known in Australia (including those replaced by noble opal!!!), Denmark (EU), and Taimyr (RF, CIS). In Olenica, glendonites are found in bizarre intergrowths with rounded pebbles, mollusk shells and rounded clay-carbonate nodules. It happens that glendonite is embedded in such a concretion and becomes visible after sawing it. Moreover, in the context of nodules, glendonite is surprisingly similar to an orange star. Such “potatoes” with a glendonite star inside are found on the shore, while individual, large glendonites have become rare. Author of the photo (2008).
The shore of the White Sea near the village of Olenitsa. During low tide.
At this place there is a manifestation of glendonites, or “White Sea flyers”.
Glendonite, around which a clay-carbonate nodule began to grow.
This glendonite managed to grow on rounded granite-gneiss pebbles.
Glendonite ("White Sea flyer"). Olenitsa village, White Sea, Kola Peninsula, Russia (RF, CIS). Photo: A.A. Evseev.
Glendonite (calcite after ikaite). Tochilinsky section (Amoninsky formation of the Eocene), West. Kamchatka, Russia (RF, CIS). Photo: A.A. Evseev.
Giant crystals and intergrowths of "glendonites" from the Late Permian shales of southern Australia.
Glendonite. Bol. Balakhnya r., Vost. Taimyr, Wed. Siberia (North), Russia (RF, CIS). Photo: A.A. Evseev.
These spindle-shaped corundum crystals seem to be assembled from many fragments. San Jacinto, California, USA
Corundum crystals (ruby and sapphire) look like “White Sea flyers”
Corundum crystal. San Jacinto Peak, Riverside Co., California, USA. Photo .
Large and important groups of minerals in many types of activities include precious stones or gems. Groups of such stones even today do not have clear differences and accepted common names, so the concept of gems is very vague and can be applied to many stones, minerals or rocks that can be used in the manufacture of jewelry or in other industries. And yet, gems are classified into precious, semi-precious and ornamental minerals and rocks. All of them are transparent and colored and have such qualities as:
- greater strength
- transparency
- unusual color (drawing)
- shine and shine
- high light scattering
- Possibility of cutting, grinding and polishing.
Transparent minerals are used mainly for cutting, while colored stones are used for various decorations and in jewelry. And, of course, all gem minerals are valued for their beauty, rarity and durability.
Methods for extracting stones
Mining of precious stones has begun since time immemorial. We can safely say that the first mining occurred at the moment when a pebble of unusual shape or beauty was found on the ground, on the sea coast or in the mountains.
At the moment, all stones are carefully studied: rocks are determined, their origin and composition are analyzed. Then the found deposits are explored, wells are drilled and special samples are taken. Sometimes the deposit is still being explored, but production work is already underway. However, the deposits found become explored only when it is possible to determine how many gems can be mined.
The method used to mine jewelry is determined depending on where it is found. Quite rarely, but it happens that deep veins of stone are located directly in the parent rock, and here mining, of course, is difficult. But basically the locations of gems are placers. They contain empty nodules, inside of which there are crystals called geodes. They look like an ordinary boulder, but if you open it, you can find extraordinary sparkling crystals: purple amethysts, yellow citrines and other minerals. But stones such as opals, chalcedony or agate can be in bubbles of gas formed from basalt and andesite lava. The parent rock is affected by the environment, weathering, erosion, as a result of which an accumulation of minerals occurs, the so-called eluvial placer, or stones with the help of rain streams end up in rivers (alluvial placer) or belong to the seas (coastal-marine placer). For example, on the island of Sri Lanka, precious stones such as sapphires, rubies and spinels were found in pebble deposits. And on the coastal-ocean placers, which are located in western Africa, diamonds have been discovered, which are extracted by washing several tons of coastal sand. Almost the same situation is with amber, which is rich in the Baltic coast. After all, gems, unlike minerals, are denser and the process of sedimentation in them occurs faster as soon as the flow carrying them weakens.
This so-called “natural washing” produces good deposits, sometimes just ordinary primitive washing of the soil is enough. But it is worth noting that such scatterings of stones usually contain not very high-quality samples, because during such a journey all kinds of damage or crushing into small parts occur. Therefore, to extract valuable minerals, one has to get to the bedrock deposits by crushing solid rock. This is hard, long and expensive work, because you need to get rid of low-quality raw materials, including waste rock. And the cost of gems with such mining is higher.
Currently, diamonds are mined using kimberlite pipes - these are pipe-shaped bodies of different sizes that were formed as a result of gas breakthrough. There are more than one and a half thousand such pipes, but less than a dozen are used for industrial production. As a rule, the clusters found are not large; they are mostly single crystals. The largest find was discovered in South Africa; the Cullinan diamond weighed just over three thousand carats. Russian diamonds are mostly of Yakut origin, only a small part was discovered near Arkhangelsk. But the use of kimberlite pipes is no longer possible everywhere; in some places it is necessary to use underground mining, which is very expensive.
To extract gem minerals, you can use underground work (mining) or open methods (quarry). It was mentioned above that a distinctive feature of underground work is its high cost, therefore this method is used to accurately determine the mineral body saturated with gems. Basically, these are, of course, diamonds, the real price of which can recoup the necessary costs.
It is worth noting that in many countries, this applies primarily to Africa and Asia, they mainly use primitive extraction methods. As a rule, they simply collect gems from various surfaces of the earth. With the help of river dams, soil is washed. It should be noted that there is a loss of gems such as beryl, tourmaline or quartz. Minerals with a density of less than three Mohs scale units are also extracted from placers, which can be located both inside and outside the earth's surface. When covering the placer with soil, it is removed or otherwise opened mechanically or simply by hand. So, for example, amateur enthusiasts mined celestine gemstone in Turkmenistan, a now practically abandoned deposit. And on the Kola Peninsula, near the Keiva mountain range, the largest deposits of such a mineral as amazonite were found. It has an amazing color and its layers are very close. Helicopter technology is used to extract it, because it is not possible to deliver it in any other way. Kyanite, garnet, and staurolite were also found in the same places. But the work is carried out by the hands of enthusiasts and small work teams.
Peculiarities of production in different countries
Standards for mining and exploration of gem minerals are set differently in all countries. For example, in the United States there is a famous topaz valley and topaz mining there can be done by an ordinary person, but only with the use of hand tools. And if in some countries the law requires additional permission to mine certain precious stones, then in Africa there are villages that exist only due to gold placers found nearby. Quartz, emeralds, aquamarines, and colored tourmaline were also found here. Villagers mine the placers with their hands, and then resell them to a buyer, receiving a pittance for it. However, these finds then end up on jewelry markets at an artificially high price. The same applies to the deposits of Guinea, where the extraction of placer diamonds does not require any special costs, and there is no state control or customs strictness. As a result, there is no real estimate of the volume of mined gemstones.
Peculiarities of production in Russia
As for Russia, the effect of legislative norms and rules is not observed here either. The Federal Law only covers diamonds, emeralds, rubies, sapphires, alexandrite, pearls and amber. However, there are over a thousand different gem minerals on the Russian market, and most of the deposits have already been explored.
Many gems are unique and their cost is very high, for example, this is Yakut charoite. The lilac-colored stone lends itself well to polishing and is used for making elegant jewelry and various decors. No more than one hundred tons are mined annually, otherwise, if production is exceeded, reserves may be depleted. This rare gem, even when unprocessed, can cost over one hundred dollars per kilogram.
Let us give an example of the situation with jasper. Back in the USSR, work was carried out at the largest deposit near Orenburg, then almost three hundred tons of variegated jasper were mined per year. The stone was used for the construction of the Moscow metro and was used to decorate the Kremlin. However, since the 90s, the deposit was abandoned, although there was still a reserve of about seven thousand tons. Currently, work is being restored, at least a mining license has been issued, but for some reason a St. Petersburg company took on this, and not local prospectors.
Mining precious gems is rightfully considered a labor-intensive and troublesome task, and there are many good reasons for this. First of all, geological exploration is not being carried out properly. The last successful discovery occurred in the mid-90s. Then black jasper was discovered in the Republic of Tyva. The gem is not particularly beautiful, but has amazing strength. A preliminary assessment showed that the deposit found is over five hundred thousand tons. And this is perhaps the only success in recent years. The remaining deposits, as a rule, are mostly poorly explored or have already been depleted.
As for non-precious gems, in general, as a rule, they are an accidental discovery due to the discovery of other fossils in the neighborhood. In addition, if the extraction of precious stones is somehow taken into account by the state, a special license is issued, and so on, then as for other minerals, they are completely devoid of any accounting. For example, Buryatia is famous for its jade deposits. There is also green, black and even valuable white jade. According to official statistics, production amounts to over two hundred tons annually, and almost seven hundred tons of stone are mined illegally. Most of the minerals are unprocessed and shipped to China, which values this stone very much and uses it in many industries. In Chinese markets, the price of jade reaches almost two hundred dollars per kilogram, and if it is some kind of product, it is ten times higher. And in Russia the price of a stone is ten to fifteen dollars a kilogram. Thus, the budget of Buryatia experiences an annual loss of huge funds.
And while the authorities are deciding the issue with gems at the legislative level, you should not despair, but rather visit such extraordinary places where you have the opportunity to relax and replenish your own collection of gem minerals. This includes Adygea, where the Belorechenskoye deposit contains quartz, calcite and other minerals, and the White Sea coast with amethyst deposits and other magnificent places. After all, what is income for the state authorities is a happy opportunity for ordinary people to enjoy natural wonders and feel the energy of extraordinary fairy-tale gems.
In addition to the famous tea plantations, Sri Lanka is also famous for its precious stones. It occupies a leading position in the mining of precious stones. The process of extracting stones has remained unchanged since ancient times. It's still manual labor. Mines are dug using a pick and shovel, usually close to the river bank. The rock itself is lifted up in baskets or buckets using ropes, and then washed under running water or in a nearby river. Then special people get to work, trying to find a jewel in a handful of stones. Sometimes you can find one, two or even a whole handful of stones, but often the searchers are left empty-handed. And the whole process begins again. Almost all precious stones, especially large ones, are sold at auction.
During the time of Arab traders, the island was called Serendip or the island of precious stones. Under the name "Serendip" Sri Lanka entered the stories of Sinbad the Sailor, who visited Sri Lanka twice, and the tales of 1000 and 1 night. The famous traveler Marco Polo saw a ruby as thick as a man's arm adorning the Ruwanveli Dagoba in Anuradhapura. The famous blue sapphire “Blue Beauty” of 400 carats, adorning the English crown, as well as the “Star of India” sapphire of 536 carats, exhibited in the New York Museum, comes from Sri Lanka, namely from the city of Ratnapura, which has been important for centuries center for the extraction of precious stones.
01. Mining is carried out only manually. The only automation equipment is pumps that constantly pump out water. They dig right in the rice fields. If you turn off the pump, the mine will flood in about an hour. If the mine is deep, then air is forced into the adit using a motor pump. 
02. Previously, they used excavators and other heavy equipment for mining, but they left behind lakes. 
03. In Sri Lanka, about 90% of the land contains almost half of the 200 varieties of precious and semi-precious stones that exist in the world. 
04. To mine stones you need a license, it costs $5,000 a year. 
05. In these wicker baskets the soil is passed upstairs, where it is washed in search of precious stones. 
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07. More serious development of several mines. The depth of the mine is from 7 to 30 meters. 
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09. Development here was stopped several months ago, the mine is abandoned. 
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11. All raised clay is washed. 
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13. After 10 minutes, only small pebbles remain in a special basket. 
14. Precious sapphires, rubies, alexandrites, etc. are found among them. Sometimes you can dig for 2-3 months and not find a single stone. 
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16. Here are some semi-precious stones. After the end of the shift, they are handed over to the market. Until you start processing a stone, it is not clear how valuable it is, so no one will give much for an unprocessed stone. But if the stone turns out to be clean, without foreign impurities, it can be very expensive, but the person who mined it will not know about it. In order not to lose money in case of such luck, many prospectors work as families, some mine, others process. 
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18. A real Marlboro cowboy. 
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22. After processing, the stones are delivered to the store. 
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24. Store them in envelopes. Only a professional can understand where a real valuable stone is. Sapphires, for example, are heated to give them the desired color. Real pure sapphire does not need heat treatment and is very expensive. The price of one carat reaches $10,000. 
25. Handbag for expensive stones. 
26. In Sri Lanka there are different types of garnets: essonite (orange-brown), almandine (fiery red), rhodolite (pale red), spesartite (brown-red), as well as yellowish-red garnet. You can also find here greenish-yellow Alexandrite, Cat's eye, Moonstone (light, translucent, with bluish reflections), Amethyst, Aquamarine, Beryl, Topaz (usually yellow-brown), Zircon, Tourmaline Chrysoberyl (golden yellow or greenish color) , and Spinel. 
27. Sapphires, average price $300 per carat. 
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