Ore Deposits
The American Museum is home to a collection of approximately 5,000 samples representing important mineral deposits from around the world. These deposits have concentrations of various minerals that are important resources for human consumption. Ore and rock samples, lengths of drill core, and polished sections for reflected light microscopy are all part of the collection; these materials are available for research by scholars. Specimens in the collection include:
- The Edward S. Sampson mineral deposit collection (donated by Princeton University)
- Suites of mineralized granites, rhyolites, and pegmatites from Europe and North America
- The massive sulfide deposits of Ducktown, Tennessee and Ontario, Canada
- The native copper deposits of Michigan
- The magnetite deposits sixty miles north of New York City
- Drill core from the mines of fluorescent minerals in Stirling Hill, NJ
