Japanese experts in crystal growth pay a visit to Almeria’s Pulpí Geode

A delegation of scientists from Japan, experts in crystallography and crystal growth, have paid a visit to Almeria’s Pulpí Geode.

The Mayor of Pulpí, Juan Pedro García, and the Councillor for Tourism and Geode, Juan Bautista López, received the group of scientists at the Town Hall of Pulpí.

The experts, led by Professor Katsuo Tsukamoto, from the Tohoku University of Sendai, and Professors Mihoko Maruyama and Hiroshi Yoshikawa from the University of Osaka participated last week in the International Conference of Crystal Growth, held in Naples.

Professor, Juanma García-Ruiz, author of the book and documentary “The Mystery of the Giant Crystals”, was asked to include a visit to the Mina Rica and the Pulpí Geode during his study trip to the University of Granada.

The Japanese scientists who are great experts in crystallography, were enthusiastic after learning about the Pulpi Geode marvel of the mineral world.

After the visit, the scientists agreed to establish cooperation within the framework of the Spanish Japanese Society for Scientific Cooperation, whose President, Doctor Jimenez Espejo, also participated in the visit.

Geodes are formations that arise in rocky cavities whose walls, over the centuries, have been covered with crystallized minerals projected inwards. For most of us, who are not experts in geology, this may sound strange and even bland, but the Pulpí Geode is the greatest exponent of this type of formation in all of Europe.

In December 1999, a committee of experts from the Madrid Mineralogist Group discovered the Pulpí Geode in an old abandoned mine, the Mina Rica, in the heart of the Sierra del Aguilón.

After centuries hidden underground, this impressive cave upholstered by countless plaster crystals that can reach two metres in length finally came to light.

Its brightness and transparency, the perfection of its morphology and the optimal state of conservation in which it is found make the Pulpí Geode a true landmark of nature and one of the best geodes in Spain in terms of its conservation and characteristics.