Generously displayed full-page in an oversize format (9.5x13"), photos of 80 specimens from the singular collection of the Houston Museum of Natural Science show off nature's masterful hand with acanthite, adamite, azurite, barite, beryl, and bournonite..., on through topaz, torbernite, and zoisite. Essays by Wilson (editor, The Mineralogical Record) and Barsche (Houston Museum of Natural Science) discuss the history of the Museum's collection; what makes a mineral collectible (e.g. crystal form, transparency, color, size, perfection); the history of each specimen from mine to museum; and the history of aristocratic mineral collection from the 16th to the 20th centuries. For rockhounds of all stripes and naturalists with an aesthetic eye. Annotation ©2004 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)