January 29 – February 15, 2025
Welcome to the Tucson Shows!
Here we are again in the warm (80 degrees F, 26 degrees C), desert city of Tucson, exploring just "a few" of the 53 shows advertised this year. Some are small, intimate shows, and many are grand showcases with hundreds of dealers, beckoning to rock and mineral enthusiasts worldwide.
So we start on a new 2026 adventure over the next couple of weeks, and along the way we will share a bit of the fun.
Welcome to the Tucson Shows!
Here we are again in the warm (80 degrees F, 26 degrees C), desert city of Tucson, exploring just "a few" of the 53 shows advertised this year. Some are small, intimate shows, and many are grand showcases with hundreds of dealers, beckoning to rock and mineral enthusiasts worldwide.
So we start on a new 2026 adventure over the next couple of weeks, and along the way we will share a bit of the fun.
So, let's start with: Things We Didn't Buy Today ... and Why
Maybe ugly?
Reproductions
|
Not rocks
Slabs up to 30K!
These seem pointless :)
|
More Madagascar sinks
Too large
|
So, next up: Things We Would Buy If We Had More Space ... and Cash
Growth Rings one can see from across the room but you need a big room
One needs a huge wall ...
Purportedly larimar after cycad
|
We would need a bank loan!
This room is jam-packed with Big Wood
Tiny and pricey
|
A legend in the Petrified Wood business, Ralph Thompson will soon retire
If you haven't been to Tucson or looked at this review of the show over past years, you should know that Ralph is the pre-eminent purveyor of spectacular large petrified wood specimens. He purchased the business from Herb Zuhl many years ago and has continued to offer the most stunning of slabs -- tabletop pieces his specialty. We can all hope that some other individual continues his legacy for all of us who relish the beauty (and enormous size) of these pieces. We will all miss seeing Ralph and his lovely wife Annie in Tucson.
If you haven't been to Tucson or looked at this review of the show over past years, you should know that Ralph is the pre-eminent purveyor of spectacular large petrified wood specimens. He purchased the business from Herb Zuhl many years ago and has continued to offer the most stunning of slabs -- tabletop pieces his specialty. We can all hope that some other individual continues his legacy for all of us who relish the beauty (and enormous size) of these pieces. We will all miss seeing Ralph and his lovely wife Annie in Tucson.
|
|
|
And now for a recap of some of the 53 shows in Tucson this year.
(Don't worry -- we will only cover a few!)
(Don't worry -- we will only cover a few!)
|
Fossil and Mineral Alley
665 N Freeway, Tucson, AZ 85745 A visit to the Mineral and Fossil Alley show is like a visit to the past. Yes, the fossils are old and this is one aspect of visiting the past. But the show is strangely like the film Groundhog Day in the USA - it seems like we have been here before and seen the same faces and the same fossils now for many, many years. Of course, the fossils are newly offered; it is only the species and the localities that are familiar and make it seem like we have seen them before. There is a single dealer (Utah Dump Digger) that dependably brings petrified wood to this show and this year was no exception - they had many specimens labeled as being from an old collection. Of course, they also had the usual vast array of dinosaur bone but it was the wood that attracted our eye. A long slow walk through the remainder of the show did not turn up very many specimens of fossil plants or petrified woods. A smattering, yes, but nothing that begged to go home with us. It is all seemingly part of a trend that sees a decline in the availability of botanical fossils that may be driven by the dearth of new localities and decline in material of old localities. We tend to favor the acquisition of material out of old collections since the number of diggers, cutters, dealers and collectors at shows, even Tucson) continues a sad downward trend. Yep, the pics are not that interesting. This is a true fossil-lover motel show, with all of the genuine feel. |
|
|
Kino Gem and Mineral Show
Kino Sports Complex tents, 2500 E. Ajo Way 18 Days! This is the show that we as older petrified wood lovers and lapidary folks lament the most. It was once mecca for the most skilled lapidarists (we remember particularly our dear friend Hans Gamma of Fountain Hills, Arizona, a premier lapidary craftsman and extraordinary artist, also author of several books about wood and agate. Hans would always make Kino his first stop to spend his time wetting and drying rough rock in the Tucson sun to be able to select the perfect stones for polish). But times change, and now this huge show of 200 dealers or so offers more in the realm of finished goods and jewelry and ... presented mostly in large tents rather than "fields of bins" as in the "good old days." Don't mistake us. This is still a huge draw for retail and wholesale buyers, it is just that its inventory has now moved on from the rough material and polished wood that we once found here. |
|
|
|
Wood!
Raining Rocks
6756 S Nogales Hwy, Tucson
An old-fashioned rockshop featuring barrels and barrels of petrified woods, agates, jaspers, and lots of other cutting materials for lapidary projects (that is code for no "full rounds" of petrified wood). Nevertheless, there was a lot to look at and even a few stray small limbs to purchase. The old rock shop, first established in the early 1940s, came with the dereict buildings and years and years of mineral and fossil specimens in literally hundreds and hundreds of flats. the Raining Rocks team are just now beginning to look through all of those flats and they are constantly discovering new great material wrapped in very old newspapers for protection. A fascinating look back into the history of rockshops -- the kind that inspired Jim in this crazy hobby when he worked (or more correctly "hung out") at a city version of this place in 1954 in North Hollywood, California.
6756 S Nogales Hwy, Tucson
An old-fashioned rockshop featuring barrels and barrels of petrified woods, agates, jaspers, and lots of other cutting materials for lapidary projects (that is code for no "full rounds" of petrified wood). Nevertheless, there was a lot to look at and even a few stray small limbs to purchase. The old rock shop, first established in the early 1940s, came with the dereict buildings and years and years of mineral and fossil specimens in literally hundreds and hundreds of flats. the Raining Rocks team are just now beginning to look through all of those flats and they are constantly discovering new great material wrapped in very old newspapers for protection. A fascinating look back into the history of rockshops -- the kind that inspired Jim in this crazy hobby when he worked (or more correctly "hung out") at a city version of this place in 1954 in North Hollywood, California.
Kudos to Suzanne and Ilana for creating this rock shop, literally from some of the ashes!
https://www.itsrainingrocks.com/new-home
|
In the back of this photo, behind the green construction fence, there was a fire many years ago that destroyed the lapidary equipment and the back of the rock shop. Renovations to come!
|
|
Mineral City
January 30- February 14 Lester, Plata, and North Oracle Streets Mineral city is almost precisely what it says it it - all mineral dealers with minerals, not fossils. Nevertheless we love looking at minerals, especially the new finds since last year's Tucson Show and we DO OCCASIONALLY see a plant fossil or two and even a slice of petrified wood as well - but admittedly those treasures are rare among mineral dealers. Check out our photo of the fantastic Virgin Valley log in four parts. Definitely the very best we have ever seen in the past 40 years of coming to Tucson. The native Russian speaker manning the room - the son of the Russian digger whom we were told spent an entire summer, 7 days a week, digging at the Bonanza claim to score this and an entire shelf full of other flashing opal-covered and infused logs. His English was a little difficult so we were not sure if he quoted a price of $80,000 or $800,000 but we were not potential buyers so it did not matter which amount was accurate! Even though we don't "collect" minerals, we often return home from Tucson with one or two just because they are so beautiful that we can't leave them behind! The precious opal log is not in our truck :) |
Fantastic mural in the back of one of the Mineral City buildings!
|
Hallway shot in one of the seven buildings called "Mineral City" and "Gem and Mineral Park" -- classy venue
|
Someone always has a new idea.
One of the profiles featuring Young Mineral Collectors on the walls inside Mineral City
Thousands of African minerals here
|
Stunning precious opal wood
at stunning precious prices.
Middle Front limb -- $11,000
Indescribably beautiful ...
$8 with a lot of zeroes after it ...
A privilege to see.
And speaking of privileges to see, please click on each photo below for a higher resolution photo of each of these pieces. Where but Tucson can one find so many stunning treasures within just a walk through a particular building -- in this case the Arkenstone showcase. These are but a tiny few of the gorgeous specimens they offer.
|
|
|
|
The Rock Yard
Barlow's 615 W Lester Street January 14 - February 15 Looking for lapidary rough? This venerable venue has the widest selection possible with quite a few barrels of petrified wood amongst them all. For a collector of course, the barrels don't offer the full-round, unscarred rind potential since most are chunks that have been dumped from one container to another over the years creating chips and dings in the rough. Of course, we (by we I mean JIM) look through them anyway. This year Barlow has a huge number of specimens from the collection of the late Sam and Ruth Kirkby (after whom Hermanophyton kirkbyorum was named). While Sam and Ruth passed away a long time ago, many old-timers will recognize the name Ruth Kirkby as an author of numerous articles in some of the older magazines such as Gems & Minerals, Rock and Gem, Rocks and Minerals, and Rockhound. She wrote about localities, field trips and wonderful times in earlier days. The collection was recently acquired by Barlow from the Kirkby's heirs and made available to today's collectors. |
|
|
|
|