Collecting Adventures in Mexico” by Dr Peter K. M. Megaw (President of IMDEX/Cascabel)

Abstract:

This talk will weave together the two strands of my geological vocation (mineral exploration) and avocation (mineral collecting) as they have evolved over more than 40 years of mineral work in Mexico. The geological environment and framework of each of the major mineral specimen localities that I have worked in will be discussed as a context for the beautiful specimens they produce. There will be something for everyone to enjoy in this lecture: from the scientific professional to the mineral specimen hobbyist.

Biography

Dr. Peter K. M. Megaw Consulting Exploration Geologist, President of IMDEX/Cascabel and co-founder of MAG Silver and Minaurum Gold. His PhD work at the University of Arizona was an exploration-focused geological/geochemical study of the Santa Eulalia Ag–Pb–Zn District, Chihuahua, and carbonate replacement deposits (CRDs) of Mexico in general. He has published extensively on CRDs and epithermal vein deposits and is a frequent speaker at international academic and technical symposia. His primary exploration foci are CRDs and epithermal vein deposits, on which he has worked throughout the Cordillera of North and South America, Ireland, and Turkey. Peter was awarded the Society of Mining Engineers 2012 Robert M. Dreyer Award for excellence in applied economic geology and the PDAC 2017 Thayer Lindsley Award for outstanding exploration success for the significant discoveries made by his team at Juanicipio–Fresnillo, Zacatecas; Platosa, Durango; and Cinco de Mayo–Pozo Seco, Chihuahua.  

 Having been a mineral collector since first setting foot in Santa Eulalia (Mexico) 43 years ago, Peter’s collecting proclivities have become, over time, almost exclusively for minerals of Mexico, and he has spoken and written extensively on specimen localities there; most recently in-depth articles for The Mineralogical Record on the Milpillas Mine in Sonora (with Evan Jones) and the Santa Eulalia Mining District in Chihuahua. He is a contributing editor for Rocks & Minerals and writes graphic geologies for Mineral Monographs. In 1979, Peter moved to Tucson and joined the Tucson Gem & Mineral Society (TGMS), taking on the role of Exhibits Chair for the show in 1984. His work as an exploration geologist has included extensive travel, which has given him the opportunity to visit most of the world’s major mineral museums with an eye out for what they might bring to Tucson. In his spare time Peter 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. A combination of all of the above led him to be awarded the Carnegie Mineralogical Award for 2009.  

Date and Time: Wednesday, 24 November 2021, between 19:00 pm and 20:00 via Zoom.

To Register: send an e-mail to irishgeologicalassociation@gmail.com.  A Zoom link will be sent on the day to those who have registered.