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JOHN WHITE MINERAL COLLECTION OF RARE SPECIES
JWHITE-16 - Vanoxite in Sandstone with Carnotite - €73 Uravan, Montrose Co., Colorado small cabinet, 7.5 x 5.7 x 4.2 cm ex. John White
Vanoxite is a vanadium oxide with water that is , I think, the vanadium equivalent of rust or of rustlike mineral species we see commonly with iron and manganese. However, it seems fairly uncommon. Apparently because it does not crystallize, its IMA status is listed as Questionable/Doubtful as a species although that is a supposition. In any case, the material is present here as dark material in the matrix of carnotite (for which this is an excellent reference specimen)
JWHITE-17 - Stolzite - €549 SOLD Broken Hill, N.S.W., Australia small cabinet, 7.9 x 6.1 x 3.2 cm ex. John White
A large plate rich with sparkling crystals to 3 mm of the rare species stolzite, from this classic locale. Unusually these are orangey-brown in color instead of red-brown. Minor raspite is in attendance. Although there is some damage here, you are gettign in general a large display face, a displayable specimen overall, and crystals of superb quality. These came out of Broken Hill long ago, I am told prior to the 1940s. Pieces this rich, that do not break the bank, are hard to come by today
JWHITE-18 - Uranophane on matrix - €73 405 drift, 600 level, Faraday Uranium mine, Bancroft, Ontario, Canada small cabinet, 7.7 x 5.8 x 5.3 cm ex. John White
Two hair-like clusters of acicular uranophane crystals, perched nicelyon a matrix plate . This is classic, now rare, material from this old uranium mine in Bancroft area.
JWHITE-19 - Köttigite - €329 Ojuela Mine, Mapimi, Durango, Mexico thumbnail, 2.6 x 1.6 x 0.9 cm ex. John White
A very fine spray of relatively large crystals for the species, from the locality generally regarded as having produced the best. These levels of the Ojuela are now watered and inaccessible, and good koettigite has not been found since good legrandite was - 30 years ago , now. This was purchased at the Salt Lake show in 1969 to Beth Gordon, a collector-dealer who sold it to John White later. I find his back-of-label note amusing..."$75, overpriced". Mineral collectors have always thought that rarities in particular were overpriced! Especially when they first come out and we do not have a context. Certainly an understandable comment to make in this case, for a small matrixless group of crystals that arent neon yellow ecxactly. However, his judgement proved correct because these ARE the finest of species, and this piece DOES turn out to be, in hindsight, an excellent thumbnail specimen with superb crystals.
JWHITE-20 - Wodginite epitaxial on Cassiterite - €696 Lavia Jabuti, Galileia, Minas Gerais, Brazil miniature, 3.7 x 1.5 x 0.7 cm ex. John White
This is a superb, razor-sharp, lustrous Wodginite specimen. Surprisingly, it turns out to be a thick coating of epitaxial Wodginite that overgew a decaying spindle of internal Cassiterite, now almost vanished. Aesthetic, rare, and world-class. This is an important specimen from a small find, of the early 1980's or late 1970s , that really surprised people. The wodginite from this find is superb anyways - unusually lustrous and sharp compared to the mineral from other localities. These are VERY hard to come by. I am told that the pocket was only the size of a basketball and the find limited to some dozens of specimens. This one, at 3.7 cm, is one of the larger pieces and is quite significant . When these first made an appearance at major mineral shows some 35 years ago, they were a big hit with collectors because of their odd formation. Richard Gaines, a well-known collector on the East Coast at the time, had the pocket and many of the best pieces. However, John White's label notes he got this directly from Carlos Barbosa in 1978 - probably right when they came out and before tehir ID as an epitaxial overgrowth had been determined. Unusual, to say the least, and rarely seen in the marketplace!
JWHITE-22 - Dyscrasite on Arsenic - €54 Schneeberg, Erzgebirge, Saxony, Germany miniature, 3.1 x 2.3 x 1.8 cm ex. John White
Brilliant, silvery-metallic microcrystals of dyscrasite atop a ridge of native arsenic ore. Beautiful under a scope. He purchased this from Walt Lidstrom in 1974 and note the added comment.
JWHITE-23 - Linarite - €329 Grand Reef Mine, Laurel Canyon, Graham County, Arizona thumbnail, 1.7 x 0.8 x 0.7 cm ex. John White
A rather large, showy linarite crystal, with electric blue color, from the best find in Arizona . Specimens from this deposit are very rare now, and this is an excellent thumbnail example
JWHITE-24 - Heulandite - €36 SOLD Fassa Valley, Trento Province, Trentino-Alto Adige, Italy miniature, 5.2 x 5.0 x 3.7 cm ex. John White
A locality specimen of a varietal of heulandite once called Arduinnite (at least on this label), an oldtimer from the famous Fassa Valley zeolite deposits.
JWHITE-25 - Bementite - €73 near Golconda, Humboldt County, Nevada small cabinet, 6.1 x 3.4 x 1.6 cm ex. John White
A rare locality specimen of bementite, named after noted collector Clarence Bement. I had never seen material from Nevada before. The label notes that it is here "all the brown material" in which case, this would be quite rich!
JWHITE-26 - Szaibelyite - €219 SOLD Inder B deposit, Atyrau, Kazakhstan small cabinet, 5.7 x 3.5 x 3.4 cm ex. John White
I thought I knew all the crystallized borates in specimen quality, and I was wrong. THis is a magnesium borate species that does, apparently, come in good crystals. This is the first specimen of Szaibélyite I have seen. It is present as terminated large crystals to 1.2 cm, in a nice showy cluster of beautiful crystals. A display-sized specimen, I am tempted to trim in half to make two of them...
JWHITE-27 - Wavellite - €146 Slate Mountain, near Placerville, El Dorado County, California miniature, 5.0 x 3.9 x 3.6 cm ex. John White
Wavellite from this locality has a rich, unique, sparkling green color to it that is very distinct from Arkansas material. It is more lush and vivid, I would say. These specimens are VERY RARE on the market, and I am told were collected only sparsely, some 20-30 years ago now. I have only ever seen a half dozen specimens for sale of this material.
JWHITE-28 - Lanarkite - €183 SOLD Susanna Mine, Leadhills, Lanarkshire, Scotland miniature, 3.3 x 3.2 x 2.2 cm ex. John White
This is a rich specimen for the size with numerous off-white, platy crystals standing up on matrix. Surely there are other species present as well, in this complex assemblage kown for its rarities. However the lanarkite is, unusually, very clear and dominant. TYPE LOCALITY material, now hard to obtain
JWHITE-29 - Raspite - €293 SOLD Proprietary Mine, Broken Hill, New South Wales, Australia miniature, 5.1 x 4.4 x 2.3 cm ex. John White
Gemmy, transparent, sharp orange-yellow crystals of raspite to 4mm on matrix. Superb reference specimen of this very rare species, from the best and type locality for the species - the old BHP mine, or Broken Hill Proprietary Mine, at Broken Hill. Turn of the century to early-1900s material.
JWHITE-30 - Renierite - €73 SOLD Tsumeb, S.W. Africa miniature, 3.4 x 2.4 x 1.7 cm ex. John White
A solid reference specimen of gemanite ore noted as "very rich" on the original label from David New, who is generally reliable on such things (although I haven't had it xrayed myself to confirm). The look and heft of the piece feel right , though, for the material , and i feel that David's rarities are trustworthy.
JWHITE-31 - Grossular Garnet - €36 SOLD Vesper Peak, Snohomish County, Washingon miniature, 3.8 x 2.6 x 1.8 cm ex. John White
A cute miniature for sharp washington garnets, with crystals to 4mm.
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