The 70th Annual Tucson Gem & Mineral Show® (TGMS) will take place February 13-26, 2025, at the Tucson Convention Center. Sponsored by the Tucson Gem & Mineral Society, a non-profit organization, the Show has developed from an all-volunteer organized event to one requiring multiple levels of professional attention.
Hobbyists and professionals, mineral enthusiasts and lapidaries, mineralogists and gemologists, miners and dealers, travelers from local, national, and international destinations, museum curators and private collectors, gem enthusiasts and jewelry lovers, club members and prospective members—all converge for four days under one roof with great excitement.
Open to the public with an admission ticket, the Tucson Gem & Mineral Show® is the world’s oldest and most prestigious gem and mineral show. Known as the “Main Show,” “The Greatest Show on Earth,” or the “Original Show,” it began in 1955 as a modest gathering with just a dozen dealers at Helen Keeling Elementary School. The Tucson Gem & Mineral Show® was the only show in Tucson until 1965 when five satellite shows started.
Brief History of the Tucson Gem & Mineral Show®
From the first school location, the TGMS moved to the Fair Grounds/Rodeo Grounds and then into the newly built Tucson Community Center in 1973. Later it was renamed the Tucson Convention Center, where it remains today. Over 200 retail dealers fill the downstairs Exhibition Hall and the upstairs Ballroom.
Amid the sea of more than forty commercial show venues that comprise today’s Tucson Gem, Mineral & Fossil Showcase, the Tucson Gem & Mineral Show® name stands out as a pioneer. First used as a name in 1957, it became a Federally Registered Trade Name in 2014, along with the TGMS logo. It is the only show sponsored by a non-profit organization dedicated to sharing knowledge and nurturing the geosciences and lapidary arts.
Guest Exhibit cases & Annual Theme
One of the strong features of this show that sets it apart and elevates it above other shows is the approximately 160 fabulous guest exhibit displays from museums and private collectors from across the nation and around the world. Among those famous museums are the Smithsonian, Carnegie, Harvard, and the American Museum of Natural History. It’s amazing how the public lines up in front of these cases, captivated by the displays. Peter Megaw, Exhibits Chairman for this show, calls it “a magnificent ephemeral museum” that exists only for four days.
An annual show theme is selected ahead of time, and this year, it is Shades of Green–Experience the Magic. The theme is foretelling of the huge cornucopia of green gems and minerals on exhibit which will enchant visitors and maybe cast a spell and inspire them to collect or create artwork with green gemstones.
Every year, on Friday morning, before the show opens, about 1,500 to 2,000 school children and their guardians visit the show, continuing the society’s community outreach program. In addition, several non-profit organizations, including the U.S. Geological Survey and the Arizona State Parks & Trails, and sister club organizations, such as the Old Pueblo Lapidary Club, set up booths upstairs in the Galleria to promote their programs and events.
The Tucson Gem & Mineral Society, Inc
The Tucson Gem & Mineral Society, Inc. was established in 1946 by a small group of individuals interested in mineral collecting and the earth sciences. The Society’s intent was to further the knowledge and appreciation for a hobby that was beginning to grow in post-World War II America. The TGMS became part of the Rocky Mountain Federation of Mineralogical Societies (RMFMS) in 1948 and is also part of the American Federation of Mineralogical Societies (AFMS). It is one of the blessed clubs that has owned its clubhouse building since 1989 at 3727 E. Blacklidge Drive in midtown Tucson, where all the meetings and events take place.
The TGMS holds a number of events year-round: a monthly meeting with a speaker (except June, July, and August, which are potlucks), educational classes, rockhounding field trips, and a member-only Holiday show. It publishes a bi-monthly newsletter, the Rock Talk. For more information visit www.tgms.org.
For more information about the Tucson Gem & Mineral Show® (venue address, contact info, dates, hours, admission, etc.), a list of vendors, photos, and Google-map directions to the show, visit the Tucson Gem & Mineral Show® profile page on the Xpo site.
Photos © Helen Serras-Herman, unless otherwise noted