WHY I LOVE ME, 17

Aldemere Farm at sunset, Rockport, ME Photo: Deb

Hey! It's Why I Love ME day here in the Land of Drivel and what a gem of a post this is! Put on your miner's helmet, make sure your light works, and descend with me to the depths of Maine where few dare to go. Well, we're not talking mine shafts and stuff, mostly quarries, but hey, it sounded good.

Tourmaline is Maine's State Mineral. Why a state has to have a mineral is beyond me, but at least the very intelligent Maine State Mineral Pickers chose a good one.

Tourmaline is the most varied in color of all the gemstones known on the planet. It's name comes from the Sinhalese (now known as Sri Lanka: place where cheap clothes are made) word tura mali, which translates as stone of mixed color. It is not a single mineral, but a group of minerals with similar properties. It is rare that a tourmaline will be only one color. For this reason, tourmaline can resemble numerous other gemstones as well as fruit. Yes, fruit. Check out this watermelon tourmaline:


Tourmaline can be found all over the world. In the US, it is primarily in the states of California and Maine, but it's common knowledge that California produces only fruits and nuts so for logic's sake, we can scratch California...for now.

According to the U.S Geological Survey web site, "Tourmaline was the first gemstone mined in the United States by miners other than prehistoric man or Native Americans." Hmm. This is a government web site. Bit of discrimination going on there? We can't count the Native Americans as miners? Apparently someone at the USGS has a chip on their shoulder and is bound and determined to once again stick it to the Native Americans, putting them in the same class as prehistoric/monkey men. Now I am usually against the whole PC movement, but that's just not nice. Typical, but not nice.

Mount Mica is in Paris. Paris, Maine. Oh, I've already gone through that whole Maine is another country thing. I can't believe how unoriginal the settlers of Maine were, naming new places after existing places, especially Paris, for God's sake. Any place that isn't in France would have sufficed, but nooooo.

Tourmaline mining started at Mt. Mica in 1822, believed to be the first mining site. In addition to tourmaline, the first rose quartz crystals known in the world were discovered at Mt. Mica around 1913-1915. Mt. Mica has produced hundreds of kilograms of tourmaline over the years, many of which are in museums and private collections around the world. The largest reported crystal from Mt. Mica is supposedly 39.4 cm long x 17.8 cm wide and weighs about 14.3 kilograms (31.5 pounds), which is one pound more than what NutJob weighs. Wonder if I can make a trade. One NutJob/black sheep/Cujo for the hunk of tourmaline. I'll even throw in a few squeaky toys.


The largest cut stone from Mt. Mica is a flawless blue-green 256 carat stone. Think of the ring THAT would make. While Mt. Mica may be the oldest tourmaline mine in Maine, the Dunton Mine in Newry, Maine is the most prolific producer of tourmaline in the state.

The Dunton Mine was discovered in 1898 where thousands of kilograms of high-quality tourmaline have been found. The Plumbago Mining Corporation (sounds like something The Three Stooges would make up) reports that from 1972 to 1974 it produced more than one metric ton of fine-quality tourmaline from the Dunton Mine. That's less than what a Ford F-250 weighs, but more than a Moonbeam.

There are other mines and quarries in Maine spanning three counties that produce gems and specimen-grade tourmaline, varying from year to year in their yield. Presently, most mines and quarries are open to the hobbyist or professional collectors for a fee or with the owner's permission.

Some people believe tourmaline has healing powers and energy. This is where California comes in. There are people who believe tourmaline strengthens body and spirit. It is also thought to inspire creativity. It has been used extensively by artists and writers for this reason. Now you know why TV sucks.

Ancient legend says that tourmaline is found in all colors because it traveled along a rainbow and gathered all the the rainbow's colors. Half the words in the previous sentence were spelled wrong on the site I got that from. Tough to spell correctly through the ganja haze, but hey, they sound happy.

Next time you are at a jewelry store, take a look at the tourmaline. It's truly beautiful in its dazzling array of color variations. It is said no two are alike. When you see them, I hope you will think of ME.

Now do you love ME?