The geological heritage of the historical collections of the University of Messina

Abstract

The geoheritage housed in the historical collections of the University of Messina dates back to the 1880s. These historical collections comprise a thousand specimens of minerals, gemstones, ores, rocks, and macro- to microfossils. Most of them are provided of scientific, didactic, and cultural values and consequently have to be preserved and enhanced for future generations. Their restoration and cataloging are necessary activities to make this geoscientific naturalist heritage accessible to scientists, students, tourists, and citizens worldwide. The present research reports the description of the geological heritage of the main collections housed at the University of Messina, and the results of the activities and methods carried out for the characterization of geological materials of uncertain classification or composition. The optical observations at the stereomicroscope and by Scanning Electron Microscopy-Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy (SEM-EDS), in tandem with µ-Raman analyses on geomaterials allowed to ascertain the authenticity of suspect specimens, pointing out that such methodologies provide a useful and fast approach to properly discriminate between real and fake geomaterials.