Wavellite
stock #21.1-227
Dug Hill, Avant, Garland County
Arkansas,
United States
6.5 x 3.8 x 2.4 CM (cabinet)
price: $330
Early summer 2021
Wavellite balls are well-formed with most of each sphere protruding out from the matrix. In excellent condition as seen, these balls under strong lighting have noticeable sparkle. Most spheres also have a good apple green color though a few show a whitish alteration in spots. An American classic, this is an excellent example, far better than typical and with balls up to 1.4 CM which is also much larger than typical. Wavellite is a fairly common Phosphate worldwide but these better Arkansas specimens are quite exceptional for the specie and most collectors agree these are the world's best.
Rutile - classic US locale
stock #10.1-327
Graves Mt., Lincoln Co.
Georgia,
United States
3.2 x 2.3 x 1.7 CM (small miniature/ large thumbnail (toenail))
price: $230
Early summer 2021
Super sharp, highly lustrous and doubly terminated crystal from Graves Mountain. The front and sides of this piece are in excellent condition, perfect with no dings or chipping. The backside is contacted and has some adhering matrix which is not seen on display. The dark color (black to ultra dark red) is set off by a very bright metallic luster. This locality still gives up some fine crystals to dedicated collectors but much less than in the golden years of the late 1800's. This form and habit are really unlike other Rutile from anyplace else on earth.
Phosphophyllite - crystals in fossil clamshell cast.
stock #21.1-138
Huaylliani Phosphphyllite Diggings, Huayllani, Canutillas. Machacamarca,
Potosi,
Bolivia
7.2 x 4.9 x 2.8 CM (cabinet)
price: $3800
Early summer 2021
Fine Phosphophyllite crystals nearly fill the void of a fossil clam shell with the center area still open. The center void has dozens of sharp terminations surrounding the middle. Some crystals show the classic "swallowtail" twinning habit and all are a translucent apple green. This is one of the very best specimens I have seen from a small find made in 2009-2010. Phosphophyllite in sizable crystals is rare and one of the "holy grail" species. Outside of Bolivia nearly all other specimens are quite small, measured in millimeters, and most are micros. This locality is about 45 KM from the more famous mines at Cerro Rico which is also in Potosi, Bolivia. The best specimens from Cerro Rico are highly prized, being both rare and some the most expensive mineral specimens in the world. This smaller find at Huaylliani more than a decade ago was huge news in the mineral world back then. While the crystals from here are not as gemmy and clear as the best from Potosi, they are still very fine and would rank as the second best in the world. The find is long ago finished and these are now quite prized as well. The largest crystals on this piece are over 2 CM but most are smaller. An unusual piece, very large for the area, this has both lustrous areas and some lightly frosted crystal faces. Minimal matrix, this is over 78 grams of nearly pure Phsopophyllite. The shape of the clam shell is still somewhat visible on the backside but the open vug of the green Phosphophyllite crystals is the real star here. In excellent condition overall, a few small Iron stains are present on some edges though the crystals are very clean. An outstanding piece from this important find.
Barite on Rhodochrosite
stock #8.AE-814
Cerro Warihuyn - Miraflores, Huamalies Prov.
Huanuco Department,
Peru
4.3 x 4.1 2.7 CM (miniature)
price: $120
Early summer 2021
A gem clear rosette of undamaged Barite crystals on Rhodochrosite from Huanuco, Peru. This Barite find has produced many fine pieces over the past few years and is now well established as a modern classic locale. The blades of this Barite are perfectly clear, lustrous and are attached only by a small point on the crystalline Rhodochrosite matrix. Selected carefully from many pieces this one has superior form and condition.
SOLD Descloizite
stock #SOLD AX-9-042
Berg Aukus, Grootfontein District
Otjozondjupa Region,
Namibia
5.8 x 5.1 x 3.3 CM (cabinet)
price: $0
Early summer 2021
Bladed leafy habit Descloizite crystals are clustered in bunches on smaller Descloizites. The Descloizites are mostly a dark brown color but have zones of orange to reddish as well. Fairly lustrous and mostly in good condition, there are a few broken blades that can be seen at some angles which is typical. The price reflects the imperfections but in person the damage is not really distracting. A good value for a well formed group of Descloizite crystals. The famed Berg Aukus Mine was the world's greatest source of this specie.
Multi-specie specimen with at least 8 minerals present, the most significant being a cluster of Semseyite from this type locality. This is a complex matrix holding milky Quartz crystals that are surrounded by Siderite and Pyrite. Semseyite in radial form sits on one edge and Galena, Sphalerite, Chalcopyrite and Dolomite are evident too. Baia Sprie is the type locality for Semseyite, but it was more more commonly found at Baia Mare. Semseyite is fairly rare at Baia Sprie. Long known as Felsobanya, this locale had been mined since the 14th century, so by any definition the locality and this specimen are classics. The mines have all been closed since 2006. Ex Ernie Schlichter, this is a good example and especially interesting with magnification.
Psilomelane - iridescent, on Barite
stock #0345-JM-3890
Aouli. Midelt, Khenifra Province
Meknes-Tafilalet Region,
Morocco
8.8 x 5.8 x 4.2 CM (cabinet)
price: $330
Early summer 2021
A complex stalactitic and botryoidal growth of Psilomelane on Barite with colorful iridescence. This looks otherworldly in person like something in a science fiction film. The dark masses of Psilomelane have both a dull and a metallic luster that is impressive with bright lighting. This contrasts well with the cream colored Barites. From Aouli in Morocco, this was in the John Marshall collection since 2000 and is one of the best examples I have seen of the specie from that region.
Cuprite - very fine vintage Cuban
stock #0117-JM-4357
Mina El Cobre, El Cobre
Santiago de Cuba Province,
Cuba
6.2 x 4.8 x 3.1 CM (cabinet)
price: $1850
Early summer 2021
An extraordinary Cuprite from Cuba that is well over 200 years old. Several very old labels including one from a museum in Sweden come with this piece. This mine is one of the oldest Copper mines in the new world, begun in 1532 under the Spanish. This is the only Copper mine of any note in the entire country, it has been flooded for some decades. The Cuprites fill a vug with sharp, lustrous crystals many of which are a gemmy red color. The crystals are tightly clustered and with magnification some small areas of native copper are seen. Very close magnification also shows what seem to be very tiny Cubanite crystals (not confirmed by x-ray) in two habits. Any Cuban Cubanite is very rare, the type locale is only about 80 KM to the east, though the specie is not listed by Mindat from Cobre. With or without Cubanite this is about as fine a specimen as exists, it is certainly larger and better than those we know of in US museums. Ex. John Marshall collection (and many others).
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