site.btaRare Minerals from Northern Canada Exhibited at Sofia's Earth and Man National Museum

Rare minerals with collectible value are part of an exhibition of minerals, precious stones and fossils, open to the public between October 6 and October 8 at the Earth and Man National Museum in Sofia, the chief curator of the museum, Svetla Stariradeva, told BTA.  Stariradeva added that such exotic minerals have been increasingly part of the exhibitions that the museum organizes three times a year.

The current exhibit will include rare minerals from the Vesuvius region, northern parts of Canada and the United States.

There are many mineral collectors in Bulgaria, there is great interest, said Stariradeva. 

Sometimes the museum receives donations from collectors, which is the case for a large part of the agates received in recent years. Stariradeva gave an example of the Orpheus agate, an agate with a specific pattern in yellow-green color, which is found in the Kardzhali region.

Her impressions are that there is less interest in collecting precious stones In Bulgaria. This country is generally poor in precious stones and historically such jewels were not characteristic of the Bulgarian woman. Gold has traditionally been valued in this country because the country is rich in gold and it has been mined in Bulgaria for a long time, since antiquity, she explained.

Stariradeva also said that efforts are being made to attract the young generation to the museum. She observed that children are already informed about precious stones and minerals from video games, but they do not know their Bulgarian names. 

The museum has prepared special entertainment for the youngest visitors. Within the framework of the exhibition, on Saturday and Sunday, children will be able to sift for gold and examine what they find. Representatives of the Dundee Precious Metals company, which mines and processes gold-copper ore in Chelopech, will show the children what the gold-copper ore looks like when it is still in the deposit, two or three hundred metres underground.

The exhibition is organized for the 31st time. Traditionally, "Best Mineral Specimen", "Best Mineral Specimen from Bulgaria" and "Best Mineral Art Product" or "Best Faceted Precious Stone" will be selected.