gems, Tajikistan, spinel

A comprehensive economic-geological survey of the mineral resources of southern Tajikistan, covering the Pamir, Badakhshan, Darvaz, and Karategin and synthesizing the results of the Tajik-Pamir expeditions. Popov relates mineral occurrences to the regional geology and distinguishes the metallogenic character of the principal geological zones. Of particular gemological importance is his treatment of the southern crystalline belt of the Pamir, which he characterized as especially rich in nonmetallic mineral resources, including lapis lazuli, gem spinel, clinohumite, garnet, kyanite, and graphite. He also records pegmatites associated with younger granites carrying mica, beryl, tantalite, and columbite. The work is an important early synthesis of the mineral resources and gem-bearing geology of the Pamir and remains a frequently cited foundation for later studies of the region’s gem deposits.