How this 8,000-pound crystal went from a mine to the Smithsonian

  • 2 years ago
With their Instagram and self-care appeal, crystals have exploded in popularity. But as demand has soared, so have the prices. And collectors are willing to pay millions. It's priced federally funded museums out of the industry. So how did the Smithsonian land a multimillion-dollar quartz? And how did the industry get so big to begin with? To find out, we followed the Smithsonian's newest crystal from its mine in Arkansas to the world's largest gem show to the National Museum of Natural History in Washington, DC.

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