20 ACCOUNTS, ESTIMATES, &C. OF THE BRITISH MUSEUM. 



The additions made during the year have been of a valuable character ; but opportu- 

 nities rarelj' occur of procuring the really fine Minerals of the class in which the Museum is 

 most deficient, those, namely, that have been raised during the last 15 or 20 years. 



Such an opportunity of placing tlie national collection again on the proper footing is to 

 be iookfd for in the purchase of the greater part of some good collection formed during that 

 period, rather than in the purchase of such minerals out of the annual grant : for this grant 

 ought to be mainly expended in keeping the Collection on a level with tiie progress of 

 Mineral science. 



The most important additions during the year, have been the following: — 



The unique mass of Crystalline Gold raised at the Mclvor diggings, in the Australian 

 colony of Victoria, on May 1st 1853. Its weight is 23 oz. 9dwts. ; it consists of an aggre- 

 gate of large crystals of the metal in great purity. Its history is authenticated by its 

 having been found at a time when the Governor of the colony, C. J. Latrobe, Esq. (from 

 whom it was obtained for the Museum), was accidentally on the spot. 



Specimens of Gold from Mantchuria, brought thence by Admiral Sir James Stirling ; 

 presented by the Lords of the Admiralty. 



A Miidel has been secured of the mass of Gold raised at the Kingovver diggings, near 

 Melbourne, in Australia, and wiiich weighed 1,743 ounces. 



Some remarkable specimens of Chilian Silver Ores. Conspicuous amongst them is an 

 orange-coloured Crystallized Mineral consisting of, probably, nearly pure Iodide of Silver 

 on the same stone with ordinary lodite, but crystallized in tesseral forms. It is probably 

 unique. Another of these ores is a specimen of (probably, but needing further investi- 

 gation) Bromo-iodide of Silver, from the province of Atacama. 



Trt'O new additions have been made to the Meteorites; one being a specimen of the 

 Zacatecas Ii'on recently examined and described by Hugo Miiller, Esq. ; the other, a small 

 fragment of the stone that fell in the hamlet Des Tourhards, Commune des Ormes, in 

 Department of I'Yonne, in France, on 1st October 1857. 



Enargite in fine crystals, from San Francisco de Morococha. 



Stephanite, very fine, from the Himmelfahrt Mine, Freiberg. 



Bournonites from Herodsfoot Mine, Cornwall. 



Native Silver from Lake Superior. 



Finely Crystalized Antinion-silver from Andreasberg. 



Oxide of Copper in very large cubes, encrusted with Malachite, from Australia ; and 

 also in small cubes, from the Cobra Mines, Cuba. 



Greenockife ; six small specimens. 



Crystallized Realgar from Hungary. 



Vanadates of Lead from Wanlockhead ; and a fine suite of Phosphates of Lead from 

 Roughton Gill, Cumberland. 



Linarites from the latter locality. 



Childrenite from the Devon and Cornwall United Mines. 



Kakoxene from Bohemia. 



Fluor spars from Cornwall. 



Schiefer spar with a remarkable base of ribboned Agate or Hornstone, from Wheal 

 Friendship, Devon. 



A group of Spinels in vast crystals, from Munroe, United States. 



Some small paity-coloured Sapphires and a crystal of pale transparent Ruby. 



Six coloured, and other crystals of Diamond. 



Two very fine specimens of Siberian Plienakite. 



A large Rubellite from Siberia, finely terminated, and, among smaller crystals, one 

 terminated at both ends. 



A small transparent specimen of Andalusite, and two transparent specimens of Alexandrite. 



From the American locality, Bergen Hill, fine Datholites and Apophyllites with Stilbite 

 and Mesotype, and, 



Chrysotile from Montville, New Jersey, United States. 



Several of the fine Minerals above named have been procured from Mr. "Wright, of Great 

 Russell-street. 



A very fine series of Minerals of the Zeolite Class have been added to the collection ; 

 among these are three, perhaps unrivalled specimens, viz., — Apophyllite, with Preunnerite 

 Faroe; Heulandite, Bern Fiord, Iceland ; and Harmotome from Stroutian. 



Besides these, the Museum is indebted to P. Dudgeon, Esq., of Cargen, Dumfries, N.B., 

 for a large number of Zeolitic Minerals, chiefly from Faroe. 



A considerable number of Pseudomorphous Minerals has also been added to the 

 Collection. 



Nevil Story-Maskelyne. 



Department of Botany. 



Th.e several Collections received during the year have been examined and partially 

 arranged; a contitmation of Mr. Thwaites' Ceylon collection, and of Mr. Spruce's collec- 

 tions from Northern Brazil, together with a portion of Mr. Brown's ^&v^ Holland 

 collection, have been added to the General Herbarium. A selection of an extensive series 



of 



