Mineral Explorers Bolivia - Behind the Scenes
Behind the scenes of the pilot episode
MINERAL EXPLORERS | S1 | Ep4 | BRAZIL - ESTRADA REAL
Traveling the Estrada Real, or Royal Road, veteran mineral dealer Thomas Nagin explores Brazil's rich diamond and gold history, and discovers some new treasures along the way. We see odd underground formations, stunning examples of Imperial topaz, and we make some new friends. The Laser Cowboys show us how they mine laser quartz crystals and one of Brazil's top mineral collectors invites us to view his private collection.
Shop Brazilian minerals: AMETHYST GEODES,
AQUAMARINE,
QUARTZ,
RUTILE,
SMOKEY ALLIGATOR QUARTZ
and TOURMALINE
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Shop CRYSTAL SPRINGS MINING & JEWELRY CO.
Thomas Nagin is the owner of Crystal Springs Mining & Jewelry Co. For over 40 years, Thomas has traveled straight to the source in search of the finest gems, crystals and minerals. Every mineral in his inventory is hand selected to ensure the highest quality and best price. Inspired by the many questions people have about his profession, Thomas created the television series Mineral Explorers, taking viewers along on his adventures around the world.
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MINERAL EXPLORERS | S1 | Ep6 | MEXICO
Mexico is the largest producer of silver with a silver mining tradition that dates back hundreds of years. Veteran mineral dealer Thomas Nagin visits several colonial towns built from the riches of the mines, and explores the ancient craft of silversmithing. Along the way, he finds a great lot of crystallized minerals but his biggest prize is the opportunity to journey deep inside the world's largest primary silver mine.
Shop Mexican minerals: AMBER
and AMETHYST
Watch more EPISODES
Learn about MINERAL EXPLORERS
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Shop CRYSTAL SPRINGS MINING & JEWELRY CO.
Thomas Nagin is the owner of Crystal Springs Mining & Jewelry Co. For over 40 years, Thomas has traveled straight to the source in search of the finest gems, crystals and minerals. Every mineral in his inventory is hand selected to ensure the highest quality and best price. Inspired by the many questions people have about his profession, Thomas created the television series Mineral Explorers, taking viewers along on his adventures around the world.
Let’s get social:
MINERAL EXPLORERS | S1 | Ep5 | ARKANSAS
One of the most abundant minerals on Earth, quartz is anything but ordinary and some of the most extraordinary quartz comes from Arkansas. Veteran mineral dealer Thomas Nagin explores its metaphysical side and a long-closed local curiosity, The Crystal Cave. We meet a cast of characters at the World Championship Quartz Crystal Dig and watch as a newly discovered pocket of quartz is extracted at the renowned Coleman Mine.
Shop my MINERAL COLLECTION
Watch more EPISODES
Learn about MINERAL EXPLORERS
Get the BOX SET
Shop CRYSTAL SPRINGS MINING & JEWELRY CO.
Thomas Nagin is the owner of Crystal Springs Mining & Jewelry Co. For over 40 years, Thomas has traveled straight to the source in search of the finest gems, crystals and minerals. Every mineral in his inventory is hand selected to ensure the highest quality and best price. Inspired by the many questions people have about his profession, Thomas created the television series Mineral Explorers, taking viewers along on his adventures around the world.
Let’s get social:
MINERAL EXPLORERS | S2 | Ep5 | SPAIN
Not all that glitters is gold – it just might be Spanish pyrite! This episode features never-before-seen private collections showcasing some of the world’s best pyrite. Join veteran mineral dealer Thomas Nagin as we travel back in time to hear stories of a country full of explorers. We also visit the medieval town of Navajun to view the most perfectly crystallized pyrite in the Navajun Mine.
Shop Spanish minerals: PYRITE
Watch more EPISODES
Learn about MINERAL EXPLORERS
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Shop CRYSTAL SPRINGS MINING & JEWELRY CO.
Thomas Nagin is the owner of Crystal Springs Mining & Jewelry Co. For over 40 years, Thomas has traveled straight to the source in search of the finest gems, crystals and minerals. Every mineral in his inventory is hand selected to ensure the highest quality and best price. Inspired by the many questions people have about his profession, Thomas created the television series Mineral Explorers, taking viewers along on his adventures around the world.
Let’s get social:
MINERAL EXPLORERS | S1 | Ep2 | COLOMBIA
Each day, millions of dollars worth of emeralds are traded on the streets of Bogotá, Colombia’s thriving capital city. But few venture to the source of these gems, located deep in the Andes Mountains. Veteran mineral dealer Thomas Nagin leads viewers over treacherous mountain roads to explore two of the country’s most famous mines. Then it’s back to the big city to hunt for emeralds in the world’s largest emerald district.
Shop Colombian minerals: EMERALDS
and QUARTZ
Watch more EPISODES
Learn about MINERAL EXPLORERS
Get the BOX SET
Shop CRYSTAL SPRINGS MINING & JEWELRY CO.
Thomas Nagin is the owner of Crystal Springs Mining & Jewelry Co. For over 40 years, Thomas has traveled straight to the source in search of the finest gems, crystals and minerals. Every mineral in his inventory is hand selected to ensure the highest quality and best price. Inspired by the many questions people have about his profession, Thomas created the television series Mineral Explorers, taking viewers along on his adventures around the world.
Let’s get social:
MINERAL EXPLORERS | S2 | Ep1 | PERU - MUNDO NUEVO
Peru’s prized pyrite, commonly known as “fool's gold” is found high in the Andes Mountains. From the busy mineral markets of Lima, through the ancient ruins of Chan Chan, veteran mineral dealer Thomas Nagin takes us up 15,000 feet to the high-altitude mine of Mundo Nuevo in search of pyrite. Along the way he stops to “catch” trout in a mountain lake, and visits a brujo for an ancient cleansing ceremony to improve luck.
Shop Peruvian minerals: PYRITE
and QUARTZ
Watch more EPISODES
Learn about MINERAL EXPLORERS
Get the BOX SET
Shop CRYSTAL SPRINGS MINING & JEWELRY CO.
Thomas Nagin is the owner of Crystal Springs Mining & Jewelry Co. For over 40 years, Thomas has traveled straight to the source in search of the finest gems, crystals and minerals. Every mineral in his inventory is hand selected to ensure the highest quality and best price. Inspired by the many questions people have about his profession, Thomas created the television series Mineral Explorers, taking viewers along on his adventures around the world.
Let’s get social:
Minec Journeys - Bolivian Amethyst
Ametrine from Bolivia documentary of Patrick Voillot
English :
Deutsch :
French :
Italian :
Spanish :
chinese :
Russian :
Japanese :
The Indians from the tropical forests of Chaco in Bolivia recount that at night plaintive sounds emanate from the Anaï mine.
This legend is still very present in their minds and is connected to the place where one finds this fascinating mauve and yellow stone called ametrine.
While watching this documentary film you will participate in an adventurous expedition to the heart of a little known country, Bolivia.
After several days navigating the Rio Paraguay, which has the largest reserves in the world of crocodiles and piranhas, you will be taken to a place lost in the tropical forest of Chaco in the far east of Bolivia, where wild animals and mosquitoes reign.
Bolivian miners who are long experienced in exploiting the subsoil, discovered one of the largest known geodes : superb crystals covering the edges of a chasm measuring several hundred square metres.
English :
Deutsch :
French :
Isolated from the rest of the world, these teams take it in turn to exploit the precious gem, sort it and send it by boat towards Santa Cruz.
In this town, the rough crystals are transformed into superb cut stones which are then sent to various cities in the country and worldwide.
The route along which the ametrine travels cuts across Bolivia with its wild festivals such as the carnival of Oururo. The stones will be sold in the United States in world’s largest market for precious stones in Tucson, Arizona where Lorenz Baümer, the jeweler in Place Vendôme in Paris, goes to buy these rare gems which he will mount onto his creations.
MINERAL EXPLORERS | S2 | Ep7 | TUCSON
A former frontier town, Tucson hosts the world’s largest annual gem and mineral trade show. Join veteran mineral dealer Thomas as he prepares for this huge event. Featuring high quality specimens from around the world, this episode offers an insider’s glimpse into the mineral trade, as collectors and dealers come from around the world to show and tell and buy and sell.
Shop my MINERAL COLLECTION
Watch more EPISODES
Learn about MINERAL EXPLORERS
Get the BOX SET
Shop CRYSTAL SPRINGS MINING & JEWELRY CO.
Thomas Nagin is the owner of Crystal Springs Mining & Jewelry Co. For over 40 years, Thomas has traveled straight to the source in search of the finest gems, crystals and minerals. Every mineral in his inventory is hand selected to ensure the highest quality and best price. Inspired by the many questions people have about his profession, Thomas created the television series Mineral Explorers, taking viewers along on his adventures around the world.
Let’s get social:
MINERAL EXPLORERS | S2 | Ep6 | PORTUGAL
The Panasqueira Mine created an “appetite for apatites.” You’ll get a taste of these rare crystals when Thomas Nagin meets a fellow mineral dealer in Cascais. Also tasty is the wine we sample at Taylor’s Port Wine Cellars in Porto. But our biggest score is a behind-the-scenes look at the Panasqueira Mine. One of the world's largest tungsten mines, it’s also known for apatites, crystallized tungsten and more.
Shop my MINERAL COLLECTION
Watch more EPISODES
Learn about MINERAL EXPLORERS
Get the BOX SET
Shop CRYSTAL SPRINGS MINING & JEWELRY CO.
Thomas Nagin is the owner of Crystal Springs Mining & Jewelry Co. For over 40 years, Thomas has traveled straight to the source in search of the finest gems, crystals and minerals. Every mineral in his inventory is hand selected to ensure the highest quality and best price. Inspired by the many questions people have about his profession, Thomas created the television series Mineral Explorers, taking viewers along on his adventures around the world.
Let’s get social:
MINERAL EXPLORERS | S2 | Ep2 | PERU - PASTO BUENO
Veteran mineral dealer Thomas Nagin returns to the Peruvian Andes to a high-altitude mine he first visited 40 years prior – Pasto Bueno. Commercially known for its tungsten, it also produces rhodochrosite, quartz, and tungsten crystals. To reach the mine, Thomas traverses dangerous roads and battles altitude sickness and then must climb 15 stories up the mine’s narrow shafts to see a newly exposed pocket of crystals.
Shop Peruvian minerals: PYRITE
and QUARTZ
Watch more EPISODES
Learn about MINERAL EXPLORERS
Get the BOX SET
Shop CRYSTAL SPRINGS MINING & JEWELRY CO.
Thomas Nagin is the owner of Crystal Springs Mining & Jewelry Co. For over 40 years, Thomas has traveled straight to the source in search of the finest gems, crystals and minerals. Every mineral in his inventory is hand selected to ensure the highest quality and best price. Inspired by the many questions people have about his profession, Thomas created the television series Mineral Explorers, taking viewers along on his adventures around the world.
Let’s get social:
MINERAL EXPLORERS | S2 | Ep3 | STORIES FROM THE ROAD
Gems and minerals aren't the only things Thomas Nagin collects. As he travels to the emerald mines of Colombia, pyrite mines of Peru, and amber tunnels of Mexico, he and his friends share adventurous stories they've gathered on their many expeditions. From flooded mines to road blocks, stampedes to jail time, the quest for great stones is not easy, but memories from the road always make great souvenirs!
Shop minerals featured in this episode: AMBER,
DRUZY QUARTZ
and EMERALDS,
Watch more EPISODES
Learn about MINERAL EXPLORERS
Get the BOX SET
Shop CRYSTAL SPRINGS MINING & JEWELRY CO.
Thomas Nagin is the owner of Crystal Springs Mining & Jewelry Co. For over 40 years, Thomas has traveled straight to the source in search of the finest gems, crystals and minerals. Every mineral in his inventory is hand selected to ensure the highest quality and best price. Inspired by the many questions people have about his profession, Thomas created the television series Mineral Explorers, taking viewers along on his adventures around the world.
Let’s get social:
Huge Amethyst Quartz Crystal Cluster / Bolivia
Huge Amethyst Quartz Crystal Cluster / Bolivia
Crystal Skull in Tiahuanaco Bolivia
The energy at this site is so powerful and could be felt everywhere! It was incredible to visually witness the power of the stones and catch it on film. Watch as the stone changes the direction of the compass from South to North, and the startling result of placing Oracle (the crystal skull) next to it!
Come and experience the power of Oracle in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on July 28th. Visit to read more!
Our spiritual tour to Bolvia and Peru is scheduled for Aug.29 - Sept.11, 2012 and there are still spaces available. To register, visit If you are interested in spiritual growth, ancient mysteries and the occult, you don't want to miss this tour!
Minec: Mining Amethysts in the Brazilian Outback
Minec Crystal Journey:
Created by Fernando Mascarenhas
Directed by Felipe Coutinho
Cinematography by Felipe Coutinho and Bernardo Mascarenhas
Audio record by Gabriel Mascarenhas
Screenplay by Fernanrdo Mascarenhas, Bernardo Mascarenhas, Gabriel Mascarenhas and Joana Bailey
Edited and Graded by Felipe Coutinho
Trinidad Bolivia | Searching For Pink Dolphins In The Amazon
In this episode we’re exploring the amazonian city of Trinidad in the North of Bolivia. It's hot, humid & seriously tropical.
We go in search of pink river dolphins & find a few more cool things including wild caiman just chilling in a local park & some weird & wonderful museum exhibits.
Watch on to find out why this lesser visited part of Bolivia should hands down be on your South America bucket list.
More details about things to do in Trinidad Bolivia over on the blog -
Where we stayed: Hostal Andoriña ($) -
Other recommended hotels in Samaipata Bolivia:
$$ Hotel Piesta -
$$$ Hotel Campanario -
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Trailer Ametrine from Bolivia by Patrick Voillot
Trailer Ametrine from Bolivia of Patrick Voillot, Music Stefsax-Awel
Silver Mining in Bolivia
Explore the famous silver mines of Potosi with Breaking Borders. Historians estimate that nearly 8 million men have died since the 16th century working in the Cerro Rico mines of Potosi. The mines were so important and rich that the Spanish were able to bankroll their empire with the silver found in this exact mine. The silver was then taken by llama train to the Pacific coast, shipped north to Panama City and then across the atlantic to Spain.
Music:
Animus Vox by The Glitch Mob
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Silver mine in Potosi, Bolivia