90 accounts, etc., of the british museum. 



Department of Mineralogy. 

 I. — Arrangement. 



The incorporation in the General Collection o£ the recent acquisi- 

 tions, including specimens o£ zeolites belonging to the large Ashcroft 

 collection, has involved many re-arrangements o£ the species in the 

 case-tops and drawers, and the opportunity has been taken in the 

 case o£ some species to arrange them topographically. 



Mineral and rock-specimens have been unpacked and examined, 

 and twenty-six boxes have been packed and despatched. 



II. — Registration, Indexing, and Cataloguing. 



All the specimens o£ minerals, rocks, and meteorites acquired 

 during the year have been registered, numbered, labelled, and 

 incorporated with the Collection. 



The preparation o£ the slip-catalogues o£ the mineral-specimens 

 in the Collection, species by species, and of permanent labels giving 

 all available information for each specimen, has been continued for 

 the Divisions of the Oxides and Carbonates. In this connexion 

 slips have been prepared for the species zircon, thorite, rutile, 

 anatase, brookite, baddeleyite, melanophlogite, cristobalite, and 

 tridymite amongst the Oxides, and for thirty-three species from 

 dolomite to malachite of the Carbonates ; specimens belonging to 

 old collections have been entered in the General Register ; and 

 permanent labels have been written and placed with the specimens. 

 In the course of this work many doubtful specimens have been 

 examined and determined, and additions and corrections have been 

 made in the General Register. 



The slip-catalogue of the Precious Stones has been brought up 

 to date, and a list has been prepared of all the gem-stones in the 

 Collection mounted in finger-rings. 



All the specimens of Meteoric Irons and Siderolites have been 

 carefully examined for rusting, and those showing signs of rust have 

 been cleaned and coated with french polish. A card index of the 

 specimens has been prepared to facilitate reference to the dates at 

 which particular specimens were treated. 



Sixteen guard-books of letters for the years 1800-1900 have 

 been indexed. 



The preparation of a copy of the register of the specimens in 

 the Collection has been continued, and permanent labels containing 

 particulars drawn from the register have been prepared for the 

 specimens of minerals acquired during the year. 



III. — Preparation. 

 54 thin-sections of rocks and meteorites have been prepared. 



