Richard is a South African geologist with a rich history and exposure to minerals. From a very young age, his father brought him into the family hobby (And sometimes profession) – He spent his school years roaming the bush, looking for minerals and refining his collection.
Many years later this passion became a career choice, and he graduated from the University of the Western Cape with a degree in geology, a refined Tsumeb collection and an unrivalled taste for the outdoors. He is also active with the local clubs in South Africa, and often attends their open days and excursions.
The topic of his thesis has brought him much joy – From spending his youth in the Pegmatite belt, it became his research topic and led to involvement with the first declared find of Phenakite in Southern Africa.
He now runs the Cape Minerals business, trading specimens from Southern Africa across the globe.
His collection consists largely of Tsumeb minerals, however in recent years he has branched out to include specimens from the Congo and the South African pegmatite belt. He has also recently started the development of a teaching collection of rocks from Southern Africa, to be preserved and passed down through generations to come. He also contributes to the Wiki knowledge base about South African deposits.
