The Dr H.M.E. Schürmann collection : Precambrian and other crystalline rocks and minerals

The Dr H.M.E. Schürmann collection is stored at the National Museum of Natural History in Leiden, The Netherlands. It mainly consists of Precambrian rocks, but also includes other crystalline rocks and minerals, which were collected from all over the world. In order to provide a quick reference to localities of interest, an overview of the most important geographical locations is given. During his life and particularly after his retirement, Schürmann spent much of his time studying the Precambrian in North Africa. As a result, he gathered an extensive and well-documented collection of Precambrian rocks and minerals from Egypt and an irreplaceable collection of Precambrian rocks from drill-cores of deep wells situated in Libya. Both collections are discussed in this paper. Subsequently, the collection of xenolith-bearing basalts from Finkenberg, Germany, and collections of glaucophane-bearing rocks, ophiolites and ores from various countries are highlighted. The Schürmann collection has been reorganised and made better accessible; the catalogues that were produced are listed.