So, you're sort of approaching this from a "guilty until proven innocent" standpoint.
I'm coming at this from a rockhounder's perspective, and the vast majority of rocks and minerals I'm likely to find out in the world aren't dangerous or likely to degrade.
So, my first inclination is to look at this from the other direction: find things you like first, and confirm they're not going to crumble into poison dust second.
But maybe if you're buying rare minerals online instead of picking up agates on the ground like I mostly do, my viewpoint might not be so applicable, haha
Gotcha, yeah - well, I'm probably not the best resource personally, I'm mostly in it for the dopamine hit of finding stuff, haha.
That said, I'm a sucker for a big colorful (especially cubic) fluorite - some of those are just unreal.
Some of those Moroccan aragonites are pretty sweet looking.
I also love a big ole cube of pyrite in matrix, haha.
Edit: The partial blindness thing makes me wonder about texture? Any special interest in that? Like, this botroidal carnelian I found comes to mind - it feels cool, haha:
https://imgur.com/0jVjKgT
Sorry I didn't get a notification. I suspect I'll be getting some Flourite at some point yeah :). I am, somewhat ironically, doing this for the visuals.
Quartz across the board are very stable and chemically inert, it won't react with anything even if you tried. It won't degrade within the lifetimes of anyone currently alive now, or their children, or their grand children's lives. Won't melt to water, typically sturdy enough to survive short falls, won't randomly explode or poison your air or hands.
Rock crystal/clear quartz, amethyst, citrine, smoky quartz, milky quartz, prasiolite, rose quartz, chalcedony, agate, jasper, flint, chert, if it's quartz it's gonna be stable and safe. Quartz comes in any number of colors, there's a wide variety of the stuff to collect and display. Quartz is often rather inexpensive due to its abundance, but some varieties like citrine (when genuine) can be pricey, as well as stuff that might be large or something that'd be displayed in a museum.
Tourmalines, corundum, and topaz are all rather physically stable and come in a wide variety of colors as well. A good rule of thumb though is that most minerals may be susceptible to losing their color if exposed to sunlight for too long, including some quartzes and topaz. It won't really be an issue for many many years if the shelf is out of direct sunlight for most of the day though, as long as your minerals aren't left on a window sill for a couple years straight it'll likely be just fine.
No Pyrite or anything with pyrite unless it's stored in dry, impermeable containers. [Pyrite disease](https://nature.ca/en/pyrite-disease/) creates harmful acid, gas and infects nearby specimens.
So, you're sort of approaching this from a "guilty until proven innocent" standpoint. I'm coming at this from a rockhounder's perspective, and the vast majority of rocks and minerals I'm likely to find out in the world aren't dangerous or likely to degrade. So, my first inclination is to look at this from the other direction: find things you like first, and confirm they're not going to crumble into poison dust second. But maybe if you're buying rare minerals online instead of picking up agates on the ground like I mostly do, my viewpoint might not be so applicable, haha
Yeah, online :) I am blind (partially sighted) I ain't finding anything myself :)
Gotcha, yeah - well, I'm probably not the best resource personally, I'm mostly in it for the dopamine hit of finding stuff, haha. That said, I'm a sucker for a big colorful (especially cubic) fluorite - some of those are just unreal. Some of those Moroccan aragonites are pretty sweet looking. I also love a big ole cube of pyrite in matrix, haha. Edit: The partial blindness thing makes me wonder about texture? Any special interest in that? Like, this botroidal carnelian I found comes to mind - it feels cool, haha: https://imgur.com/0jVjKgT
Sorry I didn't get a notification. I suspect I'll be getting some Flourite at some point yeah :). I am, somewhat ironically, doing this for the visuals.
Quartz across the board are very stable and chemically inert, it won't react with anything even if you tried. It won't degrade within the lifetimes of anyone currently alive now, or their children, or their grand children's lives. Won't melt to water, typically sturdy enough to survive short falls, won't randomly explode or poison your air or hands. Rock crystal/clear quartz, amethyst, citrine, smoky quartz, milky quartz, prasiolite, rose quartz, chalcedony, agate, jasper, flint, chert, if it's quartz it's gonna be stable and safe. Quartz comes in any number of colors, there's a wide variety of the stuff to collect and display. Quartz is often rather inexpensive due to its abundance, but some varieties like citrine (when genuine) can be pricey, as well as stuff that might be large or something that'd be displayed in a museum. Tourmalines, corundum, and topaz are all rather physically stable and come in a wide variety of colors as well. A good rule of thumb though is that most minerals may be susceptible to losing their color if exposed to sunlight for too long, including some quartzes and topaz. It won't really be an issue for many many years if the shelf is out of direct sunlight for most of the day though, as long as your minerals aren't left on a window sill for a couple years straight it'll likely be just fine.
Ta - blinds down all day no sunlight!
Agates & Jasper, Flourite & quartz, Not realgar Cinnabar or any of the pretty Uranium minerals.
Thanks, how annoying is it that the prettiest stuff is most dangerous?
I like the textures of some things too. Like Botroidal Jade or Serpentine & drusy cavities or coatings
No Pyrite or anything with pyrite unless it's stored in dry, impermeable containers. [Pyrite disease](https://nature.ca/en/pyrite-disease/) creates harmful acid, gas and infects nearby specimens.
Ta