Richard Kosnar's affinity for minerals went far beyond his published works and was much more in-depth than the numerous stuffed-to-the-gills, yellow legal pads of his notes and observations.

It even transcended the mineral that was named after him.

"Even on his deathbed, he was talking to the doctor about minerals," said Mr. Kosnar's youngest son, Brett. "He couldn't come up with a clear thought, but he could still talk about minerals."

Mr. Kosnar, a mineralogist and mineral dealer affectionately known as Richie, died Jan. 15 after lengthy battles with chronic fatigue syndrome and complications from diabetes. He was 60.

Few have contributed more to the mineral world than Mr. Kosnar, a pioneer who helped enhance the appreciation of high- end, collector-quality mineral specimens. Rare minerals that once sold in the $50 to $100 range now are valued at as much as $50,000.

Mr. Kosnar, who lived in Gilpin County and made several significant contributions to local and national museums, is written about in the International Directory of Distinguished Leadership, a 1992 book published by the American Biographical Institution. His ultimate honor, though, was having a species of mineral named on his behalf. A zirconium phosphate found at Mount Mica, Maine, in 1993 now is known as the Kosnarite.

Coincidentally, another strain of Kosnarite was found in Brazil in 1998 in close proximity to a site that Kosnar mined in the 1970s.

The honor of having a mineral named on one's behalf typically is reserved for scientists - Mr. Kosnar had no formal degree in mineralogy - and it's rarely bestowed on someone living.

But Mr. Kosnar's contributions were so large and his personality so eminent he became one of the distinguished few.

"He was undoubtedly the single-most charismatic man I've ever known," said Mr. Kosnar's son Brian, 27. "He could become friends with a total stranger in a matter of minutes. . . . He had a unique combination of street smarts and book smarts."

Mr. Kosnar's surviving family, the two sons and his wife, Tersa, are continuing to run Mr. Kosnar's business, Mineral Classics, which he uprooted more than 30 years ago.

Mr. Kosnar was born Nov. 13, 1946. After growing up in a rough neighborhood in New Jersey, he studied civil engineering at Upsala College, Rutgers and Monmouth. He became a project engineer for several large-scale road projects, but the allure of the mineral world was calling. He went into business for himself full time in 1970 and moved to Colorado in 1971.

He was a major contributor to the Mineralogical Record, the bible of the business, and singlehandedly reopened the Sweet Home mine in Alma in the 1970s.

The mine had been used to extract silver, but Mr. Kosnar reopened it to mine the Colorado state mineral rhodochrosite, which had leaped in value.

In addition to minerals, Mr. Kosnar collected coins, antique steins and classic handmade guns (for show only).

"He was very much a Renaissance man," Brian Kosnar said. "A student of history, art and culture."

In the mid-1980s, Mr. Kosnar worked as a consultant for the IRS as a mineral specialist, helping discern actual value of minerals that were written off.

"He was strong, not just physically but mentally and emotionally," Brett Kosnar said of his father, who was built like a fire hydrant at 5-foot-10, 225 pounds. "He was born in Jersey City and even was a 'hood' for a while, so he was sheer-willed."

Mr. Kosnar was buried Thursday in North Arlington, N.J. A memorial will be Feb. 5 at Westward Look Resort in Tucson, which will coincide with a mineral show and allow several of Mr. Kosnar's former colleagues from around the country to attend.