An opalized oak from Clover Creek, Lincoln County, Idaho c.1895
Abstract According to mineralogical literature, some of the finest opalized wood in the world was discovered in Idaho c.1895, originating in a unique deposit along Clover Creek in Lincoln County (now Gooding County). The American mineral dealer Dr A. E. Foote acquired and processed the bulk of the discovery into specimens that were advertised between 1896 and 1904. Over a period of four years, we have identified sixteen natural history museums in Europe, North America, and Australia in possession of Clover Creek opalized oak today. Many museum acquisitions and the fossil’s taxonomic affinity, Quercinium pliocaenicum, resulted from collective networking between mineral dealers, private collectors and scientists – evidence of a common interest among a diversity of people – contributing the best specimens for museums of natural history.