A ‘gem’ of a show: Fossils, fascinating jewelry among items for sale, on display
Jackson Clarion-Ledger
he Mississippi Gem and Mineral Society’s 48th annual Gem, Mineral, Jewelry and Fossil Show could be its biggest one yet.
Annual gem shows on the Mississippi Gulf Coast and in New Orleans are not being held this year because of Hurricane Katrina, said Sharon McClanahan, the show’s chairwoman. Our show “is expected to draw from and serve all of Mississippi and Louisiana,” she said.
The show usually is held in the A&I buildings on the Fairgrounds. This year it had to be relocated to the Trade Mart to accommodate expected crowds.
There will be plenty for rockhounds (those who collect rocks and gems), lapidaries (those who make art and jewelry out of precious stones) and the just plain curious to do and see.
There will be educational demonstrations in flint knapping, seed beading and glass beading as well as working exhibits in silversmithing, gemstone faceting, cabochon cutting and stone carving.
Fossil lovers will want to check out the specimens that will be on display – and also for sale – a museum-quality 30,000-year-old, 9-foot-tall, prehistoric cave bear skeleton from the Ural mountains of Russia and a complete 6-foot-tall mounted Psittacosaurus dinosaur skeleton, which is more than 95 million years old.
One lucky attendee will win a 65 million-year-old, 5-inch dinosaur egg as a grand prize, with other prizes to be awarded every half hour.
The show also will feature competitive and noncompetitive exhibits, informational displays, children’s activities, a raffle and a “rock food table,” an intriguing display that features a multi-course meal made entirely from rocks and precious stones.
The show has appeal for craft enthusiasts as well as 24 dealers and artisans from the South and across the country will be on hand to sell and show their wares.
Lil McKinnon-Hicks, who is a member of the Mississippi Gem and Mineral Society, said she first attended the show three years ago and, through the help of the demonstrations, began trying her hand at silver smithing. She is now an accomplished jewelry artisan.
Said McKinnon-Hicks: “The fact that I found somewhere that someone would teach me, that was a wonderful thing.”
