Many of us who are avid mineral collectors consider visual aesthetics to be a prime factor in the selection of our specimens, crystals, or polished rock slices. Who hasn't admired the beautiful colors of a fine tourmaline or wulfenite, the iridescence of polished labradorite, or the play of pattern and color in an agate slice? Even in more mundane rocks, the patterns formed by mineral inclusions, crystal structures, and layered sediments are often eye-catching in their symmetry and color variations. The insect world is equally beautiful and varied in color and form, perhaps no more so than in the wings of exotic butterflies and moths. The carapaces of tropical beetles, as well, can be jewel-like, and some of these “flying jewels” have indeed been worn by humans as ornaments.
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