From the midnight blue facets of azurite crystals to the twisting, concentric layers of petrified wood, all kinds of rocks, minerals and fossils found buyers and admirers Friday evening at the 11th Annual Geology Club Rock Auction.

The event consisted of a silent auction that included specimen at 12 different tables and a live auction for several more valuable items. Civil engineering major Jeffrey Langevin, who volunteered to supervise one mineral-laden table, said his favorite piece was a calcite flower.

“It basically is one solid crystal that formed into the shape of a flower,” Langevin said.

The calcite flower eventually sold for $20. That, and almost all the rest of the money raised that night, will help fund field trips for geology students, trips that sometimes yield specimen for the annual auctions.

Three silent auction items and one live auction item were dedicated to geology student Kevin Kinnard, who died in February at age 31. The proceeds from those items will fund a one-time scholarship.

The live auction item, a horn-shaped rock cavity lined with amethyst, sparked a bidding war that drove the price up to $500.

Charles Alpers, a research chemist for the U.S. Geological Survey, made the winning bid.

Alpers, who works from the USGS office in Placer Hall, said he had been Kinnard’s adviser and he was a very special person to him. Alpers said he did not know about the scholarship until it was announced as the amethyst opened for bids.

“Right when I heard about it, I decided I wanted to have it,” Alpers said. “I thought it would be a great tribute to Kevin.”

Lisa Hammersley, a geology professor, auctioned off most of the live auction items. Hammersley said she has come to all 11 rock auctions to help out the Geology Club.

“This is an event that really brings the community together,” Hammersley said.

Hammersley said even if one does not know about the minerals, all the specimen on display are beautiful. She said the one downside of auctioneering was not being able to bid on most of the items.

Langevin, who also minors in geology, was keen to point out the beauty of the items at his table but also explained less obvious aspects of the rocks and minerals.

“I always thought the silver lace onyx was one of the rarest things at this table,” Langevin said, referring to a rough-looking rock with streaks of white peeking through its surface. He said it was not selling as well because it wasn’t the prettiest rock on display.

Langevin said a lot of professors were bidding on a chunk of serpentine, California’s state rock, because it would make an ideal example of the substance for a class: large, not too brittle and covered in the green-yellow scales that give the mineral its name.

Alejandra Espinoza, a geology major, volunteered to be the auction’s “Vanna,” ferrying live auction items through the audience so prospective bidders could see the specimens up close. Espinoza said she expected the job to be easy but found it to be quite the workout, but thought the auction was a success.

“It seems that all our items were really special, and people noticed that,” Espinoza said.