Denver Fine Mineral Show Begins This Week

Check out the Denver Fine Mineral Show at the Denver Marriott West September 14-17, 10:00 am-6:00 pm. The Denver Fine Mineral Show is an excellent opportunity to look at minerals if you have seen all of the ones at the Geology Museum, or if you just like shiny things that come out of the Earth and could pay for your college tuition.

If you are not familiar with The Denver Fine Mineral Show, it is an offshoot of the Denver Mineral Show which is the biggest show in the world.

“The cool thing about the fine minerals show is that it’s very high end. So, the same way that in the art world there’s high end art and people who pay a lot of money for art, this is the equivalent,” graduate student Phil Persson explains. Persson did not call himself an expert, but he has been buying and selling gems to pay for grad school.

So why should students go? “These are by no means things I’m buying and selling, but it’s cool as a visitor because you get to see world class rocks. Stuff that’s as good as anything in the geology museum, probably, will be there on exhibit,” Persson says. “And just as a student, if you have any interest in gems or minerals. It’s free. It’s not snooty at all, most of the dealers are really friendly people.”

Persson recommends stopping by Bill Larson’s company Pala International. Larson is a Mines’ Alumnus who loves talking with current students.

The show is small though, as Persson says. “Check out everything, it’s a small show. Check out all the dealers, and there’s not pressure to buy. It’s kind of like a traveling museum.” While many of the dealers are just in buying and selling, some are geologists, and some work in consulting when the industry is stronger.

Persson also recommends not being intimidated by the setup of the show, “For the uninitiated, it’s a little weird at first, because it’s in a hotel, and people are just selling rocks out of hotel rooms, which seems a little strange at first.”

Photo courtesy Tom Spann