International minerals #30

These fluorites came out in modest numbers around 2015 for only a short time, then became scarce and harder to obtain. The exposed green octahedral crystal is 52 mm across and perched at the top of the white matrix, which gives a lot of contrast to this well balanced specimen.

Here you can see numerous intense orange, gemmy spessartine crystals with wonderful texture on all faces set on white feldspat matrix. In the center there is a vertical smoky quartz crystal, his sides are covered with spessartine crystals - his end-points are well visible. Further smaller smoky quartz crystals are also present. No significant damages to report.

Exposed fluorite crystals attractively set on matrix. The luster is excellent, the contrast very eye-catching, too. Also the translucency is fine and expose dark violet zonings inside the light lavender crystals.

884 gramm of lustrous, well shaped Scheelite in the most intense color you will ever see of this mineral! This is not orange - this is already red! It looks like lava! Xuebaoding produced amazing Scheelite specimens - but this size, this volume even in union withthis superb color makes this piece stand out the crowd!

The Kongsberg silver mines are famous since the 17th ecntury and are for sure the most relevant locality for Native silver world-wide. And here we have a really representive thumbnail - a well formed wire with this wonderful patina. Very aesthetic and on same high quality all the way around.

Several intense orange wulfenite crystals show great contrast to almost black matrix. The largets crystal is set exposed in the center of the piece. Minor chips are present, but that´s reflected in the price.

A very rare combination of polybasite and acanthite - polybasite is a sulfosalt mineral of silver, copper, antimony and arsenic. It developed sharp tabular crystals with tiny sparkling acanthite crystals scattered all over.

The matrix consits of milky quartz, which is covered with micro-crystals of colorless fluorite. On it you can see isolated pyrite dodecaedrons with highly lustrous faces in intense golden color. Undamaged, ex Oliver Konczer coll.

A sharp terminated almost colorless fluorite crystal with modifications of cube and octahedron. The crystals shows just a touch of pink color and very good transparency. It is perched on shiny well shaped arsenopyrite crystals, which gives a lot of contrast to this excellent specimen. Ex Oliver Konczer coll.

Wutong is an industrial mine, operatings since 1958 and produce lead, zinc and silver. The Rhodochrosites from the locality are the best ones of entire Asia. The particular specimen consists of two pink-red flattened rhodochrosite crystals. They are well shaped with satiny luster and in very good color for the locality. What makes this piece special is the combination with stepped Fluorite crystals - they consist of hundreds of tiny stepped faces, all of them sharp terminated. A very fine contrast and also a more rare combination. The specimen was in the famous collection of Robert Brandstetter and will come with his personal label. 

The main crystal is 31 mm across, it is complete and well developed all around. The matrix is Quartz coveredd with tiny Muscovite crystals and some micro crystals of Pyrite. It is from Yaogangxian and from Yaogangxian we know sharp terminated cubes, no rhombs at all. Only from Shangbao we know the combination of cube and rhomb, but also co complete rhombs. The habit of this crystal is almost unique for the locality and even for entire China, which really produce lot of Fluorite. In fact - the only other locality I know, that produce almost complete rhombic Fluorite crystals is Dalnegrosk. The only thing which is still part of the cubic habit is a tiny face - not even 1 mm on edges - at each end-point. Again - this is not only uncommon for Yaogangxian - except Dalnegrosk there are nearly no crystals worldwide which show such a complete rhombic habit and I don´t know even one second piece from China with this habit. This is also from the Brandstetter collection and will come with his label.

You probably know Phenakite as very rare mineral, but only as tiny crystals. Hre we have this massive, exposed crystal which is even set on matrix. This is an exceptional dimension for the mineral and only known from this locality in such remarkable size.