Let’s Rock! Gem shows attract vendors from around the world BY LAURA LATZKO Tucson has become a hub for rare and collectible gems, minerals, fossils and handmade jewelry, thanks to annual gem, mineral, fossil, gem and jewelry shows that pepper the city in the fall and winter. This year, the Tucson Gem, Mineral and Fossil Showcase officially runs from Saturday, January 29, to Sunday, February 13, with some shows starting earlier or ending later than these dates. A grouping of shows, the showcase offers various price points, gemstones, mineral specimens, lapidary equipment, beads, clothing and fossils. Jane Roxbury with Visit Tucson says the show respected in the gem and mineral world for its size and scope. “Our Tucson Gem, Mineral and Fossil
Showcase is known as the largest event of its kind in the world,” she says. “It is on the calendar of everyone who is in the industry. It’s the largest event that brings dozens and dozens of shows together, operating simultaneously. “You can’t cast a wide enough net around the people who come to these shows. It’s a lot of hobbyists, a lot of Etsy shop proprietors and a lot of Etsy personal shoppers.” Pima County recently instituted a mask mandate requiring people to wear a mask indoors if 6 feet of physical distance is not possible. Institutions within the county are expected to adhere to this policy. Patrons should check with individual shows for more information about mask requirements. The showcase has proven to be vital to Tucson’s economy. A 2019 study revealed the 65,000 visitors pump $131 million into the city annually. The visitors patronize the shows as well as hotels, restaurants, bars and microbreweries. One of the larger shows Downtown, the Pueblo Gem and Mineral Show is The Tucson Gem, Mineral and Fossil Showcase has a variety of gemstones, minerals, fossils, jewelry and accessories. (Photo by Pete Gregoire)
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Guests can learn more about gems and mineral from throughout the world at the UArizona Alfie Norville Gem and Mineral Museum. (Photo courtesy of UArizona Alfie Norville Gem and Mineral Museum)
spread out throughout the 8-acre grounds of the Ramada by Wyndham Tucson, 777 W. Cushing Street. The show, which runs from Thursday, January 27, to Tuesday, February 8, takes over two ballrooms, converted guest rooms on the first floor, and smaller and larger tents set up on the property. Maury Destouet, hotel’s larger company Tucson West Hotel Associates LLC, says pent-up demand will make the showcase a success. “It is an enterprising business where you want to look at what you are buying because no two stones are exactly the same,” says Destouet, who collects wulfenite and quartz specimens. He says that the buyers for the show are an eclectic group that includes momand-pop store owners, families and mu-
seum representatives. The hotel offers a 2-acre courtyard to relax, a food truck court, nearby street cars, and a large parking lot with golf-cart shuttle service. (GemRide will not run this year.) “It’s a very comfortable place to be. It’s not like going into an exhibit hall,”
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