Guide to Recording Specimens
Collected in the Field

Guide to the Recording of Specimens
Collected in the Field

When collecting geological specimens it is a good idea to keep a notebook containing
a record of all specimens collected.  This record serves a a future reference for both
yourself and others while examining specimens in your collection.

The record should include as much detail as possible about the specimen such as it's
colour, size properties and, if it can be identified; it's name.  The record should also contain
information about the locality from which it was collected, such as geographical location,
grid reference, type of site, which beds or formations the specimen came from
and cross-reference with any photographs you may have taken of the site.

The record should also give the date that each specimen was collected and any
extra details that you may wish to add in order to help you remember when
reading it in the future, such as the weather, for example.

Each specimen should be given a reference number.  This number should appear
with the specimen's description in your notebook, in any other records you make
such as in a computer database and should also be applied to the specimen itself
either by gluing on a small label or by writing on a small blob of paint on the
specimen's surface.  I use white model enamel to mark my specimens, then
put the reference codes on them with drawing ink.

For example:

If you were collecting mineral specimens then in your notebook you may wish to
record the physical properties of the specimen that would help you identify
it at a later time, so you would list it's:

Colour
Streak
Lustre
Transparency
Form
Habit
Cleavage
Fracture
Hardness
Tenacity
Relative Density
Any other special properties

It is usually not possible to label specimens while in the process of collecting.  One
convinient solution is to put the details or reference number on a slip of paper and
put it with the specimen in a plastic bag, such as a food bag.

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