Round 1 Match 8
It's a match of obscurity vs ubiquity as Vivianite faces off against Spinel.
The popular Lady of Darkness Vivianite returns from peat bogs and old bones to do battle once again. This mineral starts colourless, then oxidizes to green, blue, and eventually black. It's soft enough to cut with a knife, and flexible enough to psuedomorph after wood and other fossils.
Newcomer Spinel is so iconic that it lends its name to an entire mineral classification group. Spinel the mineral is a gemstone, found everywhere from the upper mantle to inclusions in meteorites older than the Earth itself.
Both minerals are worthy of praise, but only one can move on to Round 2!
Voting for each match starts and ends at 06:00 GMT. Due to site limitations, the polls will continue to be visible until manually closed by volunteers, but only votes cast in the 24-hour period will be tallied.
Vivianite from Mexico and Spinel from Vietnam. Image credit: Smithsonian Institute
Spinels from Luc Yen, Vietnam. Image credit: Smithsonian Institute
Vivianite found by Scott Merms earlier in 2024 in Nyack, NY. He reports that it looks black and moldy now! Image credit: Scott Merms / Shmermel
Vivianite from Huanuni Bolivia, a faulted crystal pseudomorphed on one side of the fault. Image Credit: Justin Bank
Vivianite. Image credit: @MadestThouLook
Spinel from Mahenge, Tanzania. Image credit: @MadestThouLook
Spinel from Baffin Island, Canada. Image credit: @MadestThouLook