Even the Smithsonian does not have the resources or capacity to collect everything, and therefore each potential acquisition is evaluated by curators and collection managers to determine if it should be accepted into the...
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Even the Smithsonian does not have the resources or capacity to collect everything, and therefore each potential acquisition is evaluated by curators and collection managers to determine if it should be accepted into the collection. Criteria considered include: 1) is it different than what we already have, 2) is it an upgrade or variation of existing specimens, 3) does it represent a new and potentially interesting locality for the mineral or gem, 4) has the specimen been part of a research study, 5) will it enhance the public exhibition, 6) is there an interesting history, human or geological, associated with the specimen, 7) is it a potentially important specimen for research, 8) will the specimen be appropriate for use in educational programs, etc. If it is the judgment of the staff that a specimen meets one or more of these criteria, then it is accessioned, catalogued, and information associated with it entered into a computerized database. The National Gem and Mineral Collection is dynamic and growing, thanks in large part to many generous gifts of specimens and funds. The gems and minerals featured here are some of the more recent additions to the collection.
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