In honor of February's official birthstone, we introduce you to the massive "Grape Jelly" amethyst geode, one of the most popular attractions at the Perot Museum of Nature and Science in Dallas.
By turning a silver handwheel, visitors young and old get to “crack open” the geode to reveal the vivid purple crystalline structure inside. Spinning the wheel in the opposite direction magically closes the geode, returning the specimen to its original boulder-like appearance.
The five-foot-tall, 1.5-ton geode was the very first exhibit installed at the museum, which opened in December of 2012. In fact, the gallery was quite literally built around it.
Museum officials were extremely protective of their prized geode, which was discovered in Articus, Uruguay. They wanted it safely enclosed in its case at the center of the museum’s Lyda Hill Gems and Minerals Hall on Level 3 before other specimens and exhibits started moving in.
Each half of the Grape Jelly geode is mounted to a hydraulic system that opens and closes like a clamshell. The device is brilliantly designed so children as young as three years old find it easy to spin the wheel to manipulate the exhibit.
In addition to the Grape Jelly attraction, visitors can interact with high-definition videos, digital puzzles and touch-me specimens. They learn about the colors, shapes and hardnesses of Earth’s original rock stars.
The museum makes learning fun. In one station, youngsters explore the physical and optical properties of various colored stones. They get to see minerals under different light sources and are frequently astonished by how some specimens take on vibrant hues under ultraviolet bulbs.
The Perot Museum of Nature and Science is named for Ross and Margot Perot and was made possible through the generosity of the Perot family and many other Dallas-area benefactors.
Located in the heart of Dallas, the Perot Museum of Nature and Science is a nonprofit educational and research organization dedicated to inspiring minds through nature and science.
Visitors will find everything from dinosaurs to diamonds, packed into five levels of hands-on discovery and adventure. The museum welcomes more than one million visitors per year, 150,000 of which are schoolchildren.
Please check out the video of a young museum visitor engaging with the interactive Grape Jelly geode exhibit.
Credits: Grape Jelly geode photos courtesy of the Perot Museum of Nature and Science.