May-June 2009

The mineral collection of the École des Mines de Paris (School of Mines of Paris), much of it now on display in its museum, contains nearly 100,000 samples of rocks and minerals from all around the world. American minerals are well represented with 7,786 specimens (about 10 percent of the collection), a clear indication that scientists of old Europe were fascinated by the discovery of the New World. All the important mineral regions of North and South America are well represented, particularly those countries or districts (e.g., Chile, Bolivia, and California) that experienced a mining boom.