Malcolm Luxton wrote an outstanding book, “Agates of New Zealand”, published in 2015. It’s very substantial, very well produced, extensive, detailed and informative. The agate photos in it are works of art in themselves. The book arose out of 40 years of Malcolm Luxton’s agate hunting mainly in Canterbury, along with his cutting and polishing of a wide range of his finds. Malcolm has also been especially well-known for his willingness to cut and polish other people’s finds, and he has constantly and graciously shared advice and knowledge. I sometimes saw Malcolm’s comments on people’s posts on Facebook rockhounding and lapidary groups and I always valued them. I dropped in on him in February 2022 and he showed me what he called the “Agate Orphanage”, the shed in which he displays more than 4000 specimens, each one polished to reveal a natural artistic masterpiece. I gave him a Calendar and he gave me seven small polished agates.
The “Ashburton Guardian” published “Hunting for Treasures”, an article on Malcolm, in July 2010. He noted then how there were no publications on New Zealand agates and that he was thinking of writing a book about them – “I want to stun the world with what New Zealand’s got. I think overseas collectors would flip at what comes from little old Ashburton.” And his book achieved that. Most recently, in August 2025, Malcolm gave a talk on how agates are formed – it can be viewed here on Mamlambo Rocks YouTube channel.
In late 2025, the “New Zealand Geographic” published an article called “Dragonlust” about the agate collections of the generation of “old rockhounds” – it featured Malcolm Luxton (referred to as “the doyen of the New Zealand agate world”) as well as John Taylor, Vince Burke (Birdlings Flat Gemstone and Fossil Museum) and Robin Hall. The article’s author notes: “Luxton has cancer. His children take an interest in rocks, but even so, it’s likely his huge collection will be broken up one day. That doesn’t bother him. The fun has been in the collecting and sharing, not in hoarding. ‘I’m just a custodian,’ he says. ‘I’m just here to look after it for a while.'”
Last week, Malcom’s wife Yvonne announced on Facebook: “It is with a heavy heart that I share the news of Malcolm’s passing early this morning, 6 January. He was deeply loved and will be missed by all our family and all who had the privilege of knowing him. Malcolm was a man of many passions—an ardent rockhound, a lover of fishing, and a dedicated gardener. His expertise in geology was well-known, culminating in the book he wrote about New Zealand agates. He lived his passion through service, leading as the President of our local rock club for seven years and continuing his community work on the U3A (University of the Third Age) committee following his retirement in 2015. Above all, Malcolm loved to share his knowledge. Nothing made him happier than helping budding rockhounds learn how to find, cut, and polish agates. He was friendly, outgoing, and remained a lifelong learner, always eager to explore new ideas and meet new people. Our lives feel much quieter today, but we are so grateful for the time we had with him.” He was aged 78.
Malcolm was an active and leading member of the Canterbury Mineral and Lapidary Club for decades. The Club posted: “Malcolm was an inspiration to many with amazing energy and kindness for those around him and a deep passion for rocks, especially agates, and enthusiasm to help teach others and pass on the rock hounding bug. He will be deeply missed by our community he helped foster and will be remembered fondly.” He was also active in the National Association of New Zealand Rock and Mineral Clubs. Many, many people, from New Zealand and overseas, have shared messages on Facebook and elsewhere about Malcolm. Without exception, they express deep respect for him. Time and time again, they mention his expertise, hard work, humility, and generosity. All our lives feel quieter today without him.
Such sad news – another great rockhound has passed. Sadly I never got the chance to meet Malcolm or visit the agate orphanage. It is also very hard to get your hands on his beautiful agate book too (l live hope). It is so cool to see the agates from him that are now in your collection! Treasure!