The Mineralogical Society of Southern California

With nearly 50 years of exploring Mexico’s silver-lead-zinc-gold mines – and future mines – I have had regular access to many of Mexico’s prime specimen localities and some fun things have followed me home over the years – not to mention some fun experiences in the process! The talk will weave mineral specimens into their mining history, geology, and exploration context and trace my evolution as a geologist and collector with a singular focus – Mexico. 

 

Dr. Peter K.M. Megaw, Is a Consulting Geologist (PhD UofA) President of IMDEX/Cascabel and co-founder of MAG Silver. Peter has been a dedicated mineral collector since first setting foot in Santa Eulalia in 1976. He moved to Tucson in 1979 and quickly joined the Tucson Gem and Mineral Society, taking on the job of Exhibits Chair for the Tucson Show in 1984. This has given him the opportunity to visit most of the world’s major mineral museums with a special eye out for what they should bring to Tucson. His mineral collecting has come to focus almost exclusively on Minerals of Mexico and he has spoken and written extensively on specimen localities there; most recently in-depth articles for Mineralogical Record on the Santa Eulalia Mining District in Chihuahua, Mexico and Milpillas, Sonora (co-authored with Evan Jones). He is also a contributing editor for Rocks and Minerals and occasionally writes for Mineralogical Monographs.  In his spare time he collaborates on studies of silver isotopes in silver minerals, is Mindat’s moderator for submissions on Mexico and co-moderator of the FMF Mineral Forum, often with tongue planted firmly in cheek. A combination of the above led him to be awarded the Carnegie Mineralogical Award for 2009. The unusual selenide species “petermegawite” was named for him in early 2022.