The mineralogy collection contains over 35,000 specimens, which form the basis for carrying out activities related to research, conservation, dissemination and scientific communication.
The collection is divided into four sub-collections, according to the features of the specimens:
- General mineralogy: made up of the most significant mineral samples. It represents the collection’s greatest cultural heritage. At present, this sub-collection consists of 28,000 registered items and contains over 1,500 well-identified species. The collection includes a significant representation of minerals from Catalonia and the Iberian Peninsula, as well as specimens from classic localities of great mineralogical importance internationally, giving it high scientific and heritage value.
- Micromounts: made up of small mineral samples that require the use of magnifying optical aids (between 20X and 60X) in order to observe them. This sub-collection consists of 6,107 registered items and contains 2,000 identified mineral species, some of which are extremely rare. It is a reference collection for mineral characterisation studies, often related to the description of new species.
- Gemmology: made up of 1,110 registered items, it includes all the faceted, polished and cut minerals. Worthy of note is the good representation of gemstones from different locations on the Iberian Peninsula.
- Meteorites and related items: made up of 124 registered items. This section contains meteorites, tektites and and meteoritic impact rocks. It contains specimens from various locations around the world, including samples of historic meteorites in Catalonia, such as those from Terrassa (1704), Nulles (1851), Canyelles (1861) and Garraf (1905).
- Staff
- Projects
- Publications
Museum staff
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Marc Campeny : mineralogy curator
Collaborators
- Laura Culí: collaborator research projects
- Salvador Rodà: reviewer of the micromounts sub-collection
- Miquel Roquet: collaborator research projects
Projects associated with the collection
In relation to the documentation, conservation and dissemination of the collection, the main projects carried out by the Mineralogy Department are:
- The documentation, review and characterization of specimens from different sub-collections.
- The preventive conservation and improvement of the protocols related to the preservation of specimens sensitive to environmental conditions, radioactive minerals and asbestos.
- The PangeaDB® Project: development of the Museum’s own geological and paleontological collections management system.
- The dissemination and publication of data associated with the collection’s specimens on online public portals.
- Applied research and dissemination of geological and mineral heritage, including publications and dissemination activities in the field of mineralogy and earth sciences,
Research projects
Research projects developed in the Mineralogy Department are included in the following continuous lines of research:
“Critical metals for the energy transition”
“Metallogenesis of the Earth’s mantle”
“Geoarchaeology and Archaeometry”
- Vicedo, V., Roquet, M., 2025. La gestión de datos como pilar de la transformación digital en museos de ciencias naturales. 1er Congreso Latinoamericano de Gestión, Manejo y Conservación de Colecciones de Ciencias Naturales.
- Roquet, M., 2025. Els xenòlits del mantell en el vulcanisme del Camp Volcànic Català. VII Seminari de Patrimoni Geològic de la Vall d’en Bas (Garrotxa).
- Roquet, M. Schettino, E. Campeny, M. González-Jiménez, J.M. Proenza, J. Laurent, O. Planagumà, L. Llovet, X., 2025. Sulfuros de Ni-Cu-Fe enriquecidos en EGP en xenolitos mantélicos del Campo Volcánico Catalán (España). Macla, 28, 210-211.
- Roquet, M. Schettino, E. Campeny, M. González-Jiménez, J.M. Proenza, J. Laurent, O. Planagumà, L. Llovet, X., 2024. PGE-Ni-Cu sulphide segregation by interaction of basaltic melt and peridotite xenoliths of the Catalan Volcanic Zone (Spain). Vol 488-489.
- Roquet, M. Vicedo, V., Díaz-Acha, Y., Campeny, M., 2024. PangeaDB®: Una vía hacia la estandarización de datos de patrimonio geológico y paleontológico mueble. XI Congreso Geológico de España.
- Díaz-Acha, Y., Campeny, M., Casas, Ll., Di Febo, R., Ibáñez-Insa, J., Jawhari, T., Bosch, J., Borrell, F., Jorge-Villar, S.E., Greneche, J.M., Tauler, E., Melgarejo, J.C., 2022. Colours of Gemmy Phosphates from the Gavà Neolithic Mines (Catalonia, Spain): Origin and Archaeological Significance. Minerals. 12 (3): 368.
- Culí, L., Solé, J., Campeny, M., Oalmann, J.A.G., 2021. High-temperature metamorphic garnets from Grenvillian granulites of southwestern Oaxacan Complex (southern Mexico): petrology, geochemistry, geothermobarometry, and tectonic implications. Minerals. 11 (8): 805.
- Mederos, J., Wang, Y.L., Duque-Valero, S., Campeny, M., 2020. A new fossil species of Trentepohlia (Diptera, Limoniidae) from the Dominican Miocene Zoosystema. 42, 583-592.