The micromineralogical collection of the Mining and Geological Survey of Hungary

Abstract

The Mining and Geological Survey of Hungary (MBFSZ) owns a comprehensive collection of mineral resources in Hungary. This paper presents the micromineralogical collection of MBFSZ belonging to the Mineralogy and Economic Geology Collection which provides information on the heavy mineral (HM) assemblages of clastic sediments (sand, gravel) of Hungary. The collection covers the whole territory of the country with 754 localities including open-air quarries exploiting Miocene-Holocene sand or gravel, recent river bars, shallow drillings exploring Pleistocene sediments of alluvial cones. The collection comprises altogether 863 sampling points and 4326 individually inventoried heavy mineral separata. We summarize the stormy history of the collection, the sampling and processing strategy, the data available and the accessibility of the micromineralogical collection. Our aim is to draw attention to the collection, to describe it and acquaint researchers who are interested in carrying out research on these clastic sediments in any field of science. There is a special emphasis on the potential archaeometric applicability of the micromineralogical collection.