Mineralogy collections

Bismuthinite rock on a white background

Explore our vast collection of rocks, minerals, meteorites and ores.

The collections comprise around 500,000 rocks, gems and minerals, including 5,000 meteorites.

The specimens in our care are being used as a valuable resource for economic geology and scientific research.

Find a specimen

The collections are being digitised and are accessible via the Data Portal.

Explore the mineralogy collection

One of the world’s finest meteorite collections, with around 5,000 pieces from 2,000 meteorites.

The collection is one of the most important and comprehensive collections of its type in the world.

The collection is the most comprehensive British collection of seabed samples and cores.

The collection contains over 15,000 specimens and is a valuable resource for the field of economic geology.

The collection consists of approximately 177,000 samples collected from around the world during the last 250 years.

Learn more about the collections

Find out how to arrange a visit to the collections and access specimens for research.

Find out how we fulfil our duty to provide a safe and secure environment for the collections in our care.

Discover how we are preparing for the UK’s largest collections move and which collections will have limited access.

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