The 48th annual Gem, Mineral, Lapidary and Fossil Show of the Ventura Gem and Mineral Society will take place Sat. and Sun., March 6 and 7 at the Ventura County Fairgrounds, Ventura.

The show will be open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday. Admission is free.

The show will feature 50 displays of gems, minerals, fossils and handcrafted jewelry from private collections throughout Southern California. Exhibits of note this year include “Rocks From Space” on meteorites and “Fakes, Phonies and Synthetics” on imitation gemstones, as well as displays of local rocks, minerals and fossils.

Lapidary artists will give ongoing demonstrations of gemstone cutting and polishing, silversmithing and glass bead forging.

The event will also have raffle prizes, flea market, plant sale, children’s activities and silent auctions for rocks, minerals and fossils. More than 15 dealers will be selling minerals, jewelry and fossils.

Public school teachers with a teacher ID card can pick up free educational rock boxes, rock samples and educational materials.

All children attending will receive a free polished stone. Children’s activities include sand-sifting for gems and fossil shark teeth, a spinning wheel with rock prizes, a paint-a-fossil activity with plaster casts of fossils and a free coloring station.

The show is the society’s major fundraising event, helping to underwrite educational activities.

For more information, call society president Jim Brace-Thompson at (805) 659-3577 or show chair Andy Anderson at (805) 987-0043 or visit www.vgms.org.