Naturally Graphite

Top Ten Non-Copper Specimens from the A.E. Seaman Mineral Museum - 9 of 10 - Graphite with Diopside
https://MineralFilms.com/AESeaman-9of10

Graphite with Diopside
Merelani Hills, Lelatema Mountains, Simanjiro District, Manyara Region, Tanzania

Our Series Host, John Jaszczak - Director and Curator of the A.E. Seaman Mineral Museum, is a PASSIONATE collector of the mineral Graphite. So it's with giddy excitement that we were able to film this segment that focuses on an incredible Graphite with Diopside specimen that was discovered in the Winter of 2007 in the Merelani Hills in Tanzania.

Purchased from Fine Minerals International in 2009 by former Curator George Robinson, this exceptional piece has very gemmy and lustrous Diopside crystals perched on top of a base of Graphite crystals. The find was first covered in the What's New section of the Jan/Feb 2009 issue of The Mineralogical Record.

John noticed that the Graphite crystals on this piece seemed a little, "frosty" so he was able to sample some small crumbs of the Graphite on an scanning electron microscope and discovered something he had never seen before. What was it? Check out the video RIGHT NOW to find out the answer that John and Daniel Trinchillo (President of Fine Minerals International) wrote about in a 2013 issue of Rocks & Minerals magazine entitled, "Miracle at Merelani."

This discovery was enough to change John's fascination from just Graphite to studying, in-depth, all the intricate details of minerals from Merelani.

We hope you enjoy this hidden, non-copper treasure from the A.E. Seaman Mineral Museum Collection. This clip was filmed in July of 2024 on location at the museum in Houghton, Michigan. Join us every Thursday, as we upload a new Top Ten clip presented by museum Director and Curator, John Jaszczak.

For more information on the museum, check out their website at:
https://museum.mtu.edu

For a complete list of all segments filmed at the museum, check out BlueCap Productions' Playlist at:
https://MineralFilms.com/AESeaman