Collector Spotlight: Jeremy Zolan

Chrysoberyl from Oxford, New Haven County, CT (Copy)

“I found it in a small uninteresting looking pegmatite. I suspected it was chrysoberyl when I found it but before jumping to conclusions, I had it analyzed. My suspicions were correct. XRD and EDS proved it. Very nice, large garnets were also found here but any nice mineralization is rare.'“

Sagenitic Rutile from Caterpillar Cleft, Fairfield County, CT (Copy)

“When I realized I wanted to move out of Connecticut, I passed down my knowledge of alpine cleft prospecting to my good buddy Dylan Benoit. He has used my techniques to locate this absolutely incredible rutile deposit down strike from a similar sagenite locale I found in 2020. Last time I was home he took me up there and we had a blast. Rutile has become one of my favorite minerals to find. Great discovery, Dylan.”

“Here I was digging DT schorl with my buddy David Ziga. We found a ton of sharp DTs on that humid summer day. It's worth putting up with the bloodthirsty mosquitoes to dig pounds of super sharp DT schorl from weathered schist and albitic pseudopegmatite!”

“This is a smoky quartz scepter I dug on my birthday in 2018 in Ulster County, NY. It resembles a Herkimer but it is not. One of my favorite quartz I've dug.”

Iron stained quartz on purple fluorite from the Heavy Metal Prospect in Fairfield County, CT (Copy)

“I found this one with my buddy Dustin Bartlett on an especially good digging weekend. I have been operating this small mine for about two years now. It works a thick quartz vein in granite mineralized with fluorite and galena.”

Clinochlore from Southbury, New Haven County, CT (Copy)

“I found this specimen within walking distance from my old place. I noticed interesting quartz veins in high cliffs across the street. I climbed the steep cliff and reached into a pocket about 60 feet up. Inside was this brain-like clinochlore as well as 10 other lesser specimens and some well crystallized periclines.”

1. How many years have you been collecting and what started your passion?

I have been collecting since I was a young teenager, maybe 13 or 14 years old. I always loved chemistry and what got me going was the fact that the mineral kingdom is perhaps the best representation of inorganic chemistry in nature on planet Earth. I grew up in SW Connecticut and as a kid, my family would tell me stories of finding crystals when the interstate highway system was built, particularly Rt. 25 through Trumbull, CT. Due to the astounding geochemical and mineral diversity of Trumbull, I chose it to be my first spot I would focus on digging. I remember many days of spending hours on Mindat identifying my finds. I am largely self-taught and if there is one source of my knowledge that stands out, it is Mindat.

2. What is the focus of your collection, and has it changed over time? Why?

When I started collecting, I didn’t really have a focus other than trying to dig nice specimens from whatever locales I could drive to in my free time. Through natural curiosity, I became interested in finding undiscovered localities. I was a rambunctious kid and I often snuck into construction sites as a kid to look at the minerals being blasted out of the rock. I found a lot of great stuff at sites no one had ever studied before this way. I recall an inspirational moment I had at age 15 when I visited a construction site in Greenwich, CT and found very fine specimens of sharp, euhedral moonstone and aquamarine. I knew there was more to minerals than what the books and internet said to me. I knew there were plenty of great localities still undiscovered, lying under the dirt waiting to be found.

I’ve been prospecting and trying to discover new spots ever since then and have had a surprising amount of success finding stuff that I really like. My favorite new find I ever made was a three inch yellow chrysoberyl I dug out of a small unexplored pegmatite in Oxford, New Haven County, CT. I was so shocked by this piece I had it analyzed and my suspicions about its identity were correct- I had found a new chrysoberyl occurrence.

Other finds which have excited me are my various alpine cleft discoveries in CT, a fun and very unique amethyst locale behind my former house in South Britain, CT, and a mine in SW CT I have dug and have been operating for 2.5 years called the Heavy Metal prospect that produces fine fluorite, smoky quartz, and unique Pb-Zn secondaries.

A few years ago, my curiosity got the best of me and I decided to start prospecting in Pennsylvania. I have had a lot of success in the Keystone State finding new and high quality quartz locales. I liked digging there so much, I recently decided to move there. Since about 2019, my focus has been shifting away from New England and more to prospecting the Mid Atlantic and SE States. I feel like my ability to locate new sites of scientific interest needs to be used here more so than my home. Little prospecting in decades has been done in Pennsylvania and the state has much left to discover. I am excited to work on prospecting the Piedmont especially, due to the nicely weathered rock and mineralogical diversity.

3. What do you like to do outside of mineral collecting?

I am an avid amateur chef and culinarian. I especially enjoy regional Chinese, Korean, and Vietnamese cuisines. I go to obscure ethnic restaurants in the NYC area to try things I never have before, then I set out to make them myself. I enjoy making recipes many times over to perfect them. Since I have a bit more land now up here in Pennsylvania, I look forward to using the products we grow and catch here on our farm in Asian cuisine. If there is one product I am most curious about perfecting, it is Japanese style bbq eel. Eel are plentiful in our rivers and I have caught and cooked them quite a bit. I drool thinking about the perfect local eel topping my rice. I have tons of hobbies and interests. Too many. I also love electronics design, machining, and aquariums to just name a few…

4. Is there anyone who has inspired you in this field? Do you look up to the collection of someone in particular?

My favorite collector of all time is Rock Currier. He was a jack of all trades in the mineral world. Not only was he a diligent California field collector, he also flew all over the world buying, digging, and importing to his warehouse. If it weren’t for him, there would be several significant finds that wouldn’t have hit the market. His contributions to the online mineral community, particularly Mindat were thoughtful and extensive. I never met Rock, but I always hoped I would. An inspiring individual.

My close mineral friends are also my inspiration. Each and every one of you has taught me so much and been such a great friend. David Ziga, Dustin Bartlett, Denis Ramsey, Sean Flanagan, Alex Kim, and Alan and Elise Benson, I love all of you guys. Thanks for being there for me and sharing your knowledge.

5. Where do you see yourself as a collector in 5,10 or 20 years?

My dream is to somehow field collect for an academic institution such as a university or museum. The specimens I own are here simply because I need a place to store them. They would be better off well taken care of somewhere where they can be stored indefinitely, studied by researchers, and maybe even displayed to the public. I would work every single day doing what I love for the benefit of the science community and general public. This is what I have wanted to do for my entire life. I am hoping someone scoops me up someday to do this. I couldn’t be happier and more enthusiastic doing this type of work.

6. What impact has YMC had on you as a collector and where do you see it heading in the future?

I have only great things to say about the YMC. I started digging rocks when it was a “nerdy” hobby that got me picked on as a kid, however there has been a huge explosion of young people getting into rocks. It’s so awesome and the future of the hobby is definitely safe! I only see things getting bigger from here. More members, more amazing content, and more of a presence at shows and events both online and off is imminent! YMC gives us young collectors a place to share pieces we love and discuss an astounding array of topics. Many of you are extremely knowledgeable, skilled collectors and it makes me happy seeing young people grow and blossom into strong future members of our beloved hobby.

7.  What is your single favorite pocket you’ve ever found and why?

My favorite pocket I ever dug was a smoky quartz scepter pocket I found at an obscure locality in NY on my birthday in 2018. It was a very large grey clay filled pocket hosted in limey shale and I pulled out a magnificent cabinet sized scepter with a smoky head in addition to about 20 other smaller ones. I love finding Herkimer style quartz, it is something I go after. This was the best pocket of this style of quartz I have found that wasn’t technically a Herkimer diamond. I never named the pocket because it was too small to be worth it, but I will never forget it.