The mineralogy and petrology collection contains approximately 115,000 minerals, 500,000 stones and 205,000 grinding plates from virtually all over the world, including the Netherlands. It consists of raw minerals, polished gemstones, ores, rocks, drill cores, grinding plates, lacquer profiles, building and sculpture stones and geological models. Because of its large collection and centuries of experience, Naturalis is often the first point of contact for questions regarding mineral and stone collections. Researches from all over the world come to Naturalis to conduct their research.
Origin
The original collection of the former National Museum of Geology and Mineralogy forms the core of the collection. These collections contain minerals and rocks that are often no longer collectable due to practical or geopolitical reasons. Our collection is supplemented by the university collections and by collections from a number of other museums. Private donations also find their way to Naturalis.
King William I's special collection of gemstones consists of rare and even newly discovered, cut gemstones and beautifully shaped raw crystals. It is an important reference collection for recognizing gemstones. Naturalis houses the largest collection in the world of minerals found in the Netherlands. The former coal mines of southern Limburg have provided a wealth of minerals. A total of 64 types of minerals are from the Netherlands.
An important collection of minerals and ores comes from TU Delft, with the aim of training future mining engineers in how to recognize minerals and ores in the field. Von Siebold's mineral and rock collection is important for historical research into the knowledge of mineralogy in Japan in the 19th century. Siebold collected minerals based on their peculiar shape or for research on economic resources. Some obsidians he collected turned out to be prehistoric tools.
Highlights
- Naturalis manages the largest meteorite collection in the Netherlands. This collection includes meteorites and tektites from around the world, including three Dutch ones.
- The collections from Indonesia and Suriname are among the most important in the world. The collection contains much material that is irreplaceable because the locations where it was found can no longer be visited.
- The boulder collection gives a good picture of what was deposited here in the Netherlands during the Ice Age, and has been the basis of several handbooks on boulders.
- In addition, Naturalis manages the historical collections of important scientists such as Staring, Heijmans, Schürmann, Escher, Kuenen, Umbgrove, Molengraaff, Brouwer, Martin, Junghunn, IJzerman, Martin, Voltz and Dubois.
Centerpieces
Centerpieces from Naturalis' minerals and rocks collection include the Primeval Stone in the Evolution Hall. At 3.8 billion years old, this stone is among the oldest rocks in the world and contains the oldest traces of life on Earth. Other centerpieces are the large rock crystal that can be found in the treasure room of the Earth Hall, and the marble table of William I.
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