Rocks Minerals & Gems Golden Guide

This is an excellent field guide to the most common minerals and rock types. Inside, you'll find information about physical and chemical properties, geologic significance, collecting and testing tips, and so much more.

The full-color illustrations and easy-to-read text inside this Rocks and Minerals Guide cover:

• a brief introduction of what's inside the guide and how to use it;
• an introduction to the earth, its crust, and the rocks that make it up;
• activities for amateurs (where & how to collect, study & identify rocks and minerals);
• identifying minerals (physical & chemical properties, crystal form, hardness, cleavage & chemical tests);
• metallic minerals (the common minerals that are sources of iron, aluminum, uranium & other metals);
• nonmetallic minerals (including calcite, gypsum, various forms of quartz, graphite, asbestos, and many others);
• gem minerals (valued minerals that are cut & polished; precious, semiprecious & synthetic stones);
• rock-forming minerals (minerals important in the formation of rocks widespread in the earth's crust);
• igneous rocks (lavas and rocks formed far underground);
• sedimentary rocks (their origins and the typical geologic structures associated with them);
• metamorphic rocks (those altered from the above kinds; their identification & geologic significance);
• rocks in daily use;
• and additional information & references to other resources!

As you flip through this 160-page rocks and minerals guide, you'll explore and learn about minerals, rocks, and gemstones such as galena, halite, quartz, calcite, malachite, hematite, magnetite, pyrite, rhodochrosite, olivine, dolomite, feldspar, muscovite, agate, talc, amethyst, apatite, barite, biotite mica, chalcedony, fluorite, gneiss, opal, pyroxene, topaz, tourmaline, orthoclase, and so many more!