Editor’s Note
**Editor’s Note:** This article highlights the upcoming Mineral and Fossil Fair in La Unión, featuring extraordinary specimens including a 600-kilo meteorite and a million-year-old lynx fossil. The event underscores the region’s growing significance in European mineralogy.
A 600-Kilo Meteorite and a Million-Year-Old Lynx Put La Unión at the Center of European Mineralogy
The Mineral and Fossil Fair will showcase unprecedented specimens extracted from the Sierra de Cartagena and La Unión, alongside Colombian emeralds and gems brought from Japan.
A 600-kilo meteorite and a million-year-old lynx put La Unión at the center of European mineralogy.
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La Unión City Council
Teresa García Navarro
Radio Cartagena
11/03/2026 – 12:15 CET
La Unión is preparing to regain its international luster. The 28th edition of the Mineral and Fossil Fair is not just a commercial event; it marks the city’s return to the podium of scientific dissemination, consolidating its position as Spain’s absolute benchmark and the third most important fair in all of Europe. From April 2 to 4, the Old Public Market will transform into a gateway to the depths of the earth and the far reaches of space.
This edition carries a special flavor of “settled debt.” The main attraction will be a 600-kilogram meteorite from Campo del Cielo (Argentina), a unique piece originating from the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter.
But space is not the only draw. The fair will feature a piece of incalculable value for Murcian heritage: the exhibition of a million-year-old lynx discovered at the Quibas paleontological site in Abanilla. This “lynx with regional DNA” will share the spotlight with a planetarium set up for the youngest visitors, where laser images and videos will allow them to visualize the configuration of constellations.
In the strictly mineralogical section, collectors can find both local and international novelties.
The fair’s impact transcends science. Coinciding with the Miner Holy Week and the National Contest of Saetas and Miner Cantes de Pasión, La Unión becomes a hub of tourist and economic activity.
The fair has the official backing of the La Unión City Council and the regional government, which recognizes it as an official commercial fair, along with the fundamental support of the Federation of Entrepreneurs of La Unión (FAEP).
The image of this edition also has its own narrative. The poster, featuring an amethyst geode—a semi-precious stone highly valued in the Sierra Minera since ancient times—has been designed to radiate luminosity. With a palette of violet, garnet, and yellow colors, the design seeks to simulate “the entrance to a cave or a mine,” inviting the viewer to delve into the mysterious world of mineralogy.
With 28 editions behind it, the La Unión Mineral and Fossil Fair is no longer just a local event, but a portal connecting the geological past of the Region with the future of scientific dissemination in Europe.