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Owning a "Jonas tourmaline" from the spectacular, one-off pocket of April 1978 is among the holy grails of modern mineral collecting. I have a habit of acquiring just about any good Jonas piece I see over the years, considering them good investments; and so you can imagine my surprise when I saw so many in one place. This pocket produced the best gem rubellites the world has ever seen, by universal concurrence. Nothing in the history of tourmaline pockets compares to the legendary find, made by Jonas Lima in 1978 as documented in Peter Bancroft's book Gem & Crystal Treasures. Rarely do these specimens turn up on the market today. When they do, they are immediately recognizable to even the untrained eye, for the color, brilliance, and at best the gemminess. I was absolutely shocked to find this little hoard stashed away, for some 30 years, many still covered with the original pocket clay in which they were found in the pocket. Apparently they were bought by a gem dealer in Brazil and put away until now. These crystals, in specimens of all sizes, grace the covers of major books and collection catalogues. At any size, the quality is the best you can ask for in gem rubellite, and they have a special place in any collection.
JONAS-22 – Anatase on Quartz - $900 Gouveia, Diamantina, Minas Gerais, Brazil SMALL CABINET, 6.8 x 4.2 x 2.9 cm
This bizarre specimen features a very unusual hollow anatase crystal of 1.5 cm next to an adjacent crystal of more typical habit. I have never seen anything quite like this. It is possible the anatase we see is a cast after an earlier generation, or even after a zircon perhaps, but I am not sure. The crystals sit on a quartz crystal (broken at either end but intact on the display face). In any case, the material has been analyszed and it is anatase now - a whopping huge one for Brazil, I would say. (obviously not a Jonas tourmaline but it fit in well with this update and was also at Munich...)
JONAS-28 – Emerald - $950 Pinaje Mine, Brumado, Bahia, Brazil Miniature, 3.2 x 1.0 x 0.7 cm
If I did not know the source 100% on this, I would have sworn this to be a Colombian or perhaps Afghani specimen of emerald. But i KNOW this came from Brazil and the trail is well documented, and I have to say i am genuinely surprised. This is a vibrant green, lustrous crystal of a rich green color - quite uncommon from Brazil. In person, it has more apparent lustre. The termination is unusual in that it is prismatic (if shallowly so) instead of flat as usual for an emerald. (obviously not a Jonas tourmaline but it fit in well with this update and was also at Munich...)
JONAS-21 – Tourmaline var. Rubellite - $200 (SOLD) Jonas Mine, Itataia, Minas Gerais, Brazil Thumbnail, 2.5 x 1.2 x 0.8 cm
A complex thumbnail with a cute accent growth atop, terminated all around except only the bottom. Unusual for its intricacy. Gemmier in person!
JONAS-23 – Tourmaline var. Rubellite - $150 (SOLD) Jonas Mine, Itataia, Minas Gerais, Brazil SMALL CABINET, 7.5 x 5.9 x 3.9 cm
A bright and sparkly mass of lepidolite with Cleavelandite crystals growing within , from which emerges a very gemmy tourmaline of just under 1 cm. The tourmaline is gemmy and obviously displays well, but there is some damage to the right side, plus it is repaired because i fumbled it in my ahste to unpack these, hence the lower price. Still, it displays beautifully and remains a matrix Jonas!
JONAS-25 – Tourmaline var. Rubellite - $5000 Jonas Mine, Itataia, Minas Gerais, Brazil SMALL CABINET, 6.0 x 3.3 x 2.4 cm
A gorgeous, absolutely gemmy, 4-cm-long crystal of red glass projecting from an aesthetic matrix of lepidolite....this is a killer display-quality miniature! The doubly-terminated quartz floating to the right makes a perfect accent. There is one very clean repair on the tourmaline, 1 cm up from its base attachment. Still, that line is hard to see unless you go looking for it and this remains a vivid and rare matrix Jonas specimen, for which I am willing to forgive the repair provided everything else is top quality. More lustrous, and brilliantly so, in person!
JONAS-26 – Tourmaline var. Rubellite - $750 (SOLD) Jonas Mine, Itataia, Minas Gerais, Brazil Miniature, 5.1 x 4.2 x 3.9 cm
This is a vibrant, sparkling "jewel-like" cluster of slender gem Jonas crystals, spraying up from matrix one one side. On the bottom, more robust, darker crystals can be seen. This is a showy large miniature and at first glance looks like it should be worth about 5 times this price: However, many crystals are broken, including the leftmost - to be blunt. The two major crystals on the upper right side are terminated, though; and overall there is so much color and gemminess that I think at the right price this could definitely be a colorful and displayable Jonas specimen at a surprising price point.
JONAS-27 – Tourmaline var. Rubellite - $4500 (SOLD) Jonas Mine, Itataia, Minas Gerais, Brazil Miniature, 5.2 x 1.6 x 1.0 cm
A single perfect gem crystal, doubly-terminated, nearly flawless internally, and of rich color. It is pristine and fully termianted. the photo only conveys a HINT of teh true gemminess and fire here!
JONAS-29 – Tourmaline var. Rubellite - $1950 (SOLD) Jonas Mine, Itataia, Minas Gerais, Brazil Thumbnail, 2.2 x 1.1 x 1.0 cm
The finest thumbnail in the lot, this is a riveting specimen with fiery color - the photos do not convey it. It is exceptionally gemmy and lustrous, and the red is unusually intense for a smaller crystal. The combination of these qualities and the lepidolite matrix make it very special to my eye. Perfect all around, this is of a quality that would fit into even the highest tier thumbnail collections.
JONAS-30 – Tourmaline var. Rubellite - $750 (SOLD) Jonas Mine, Itataia, Minas Gerais, Brazil Thumbnail, 2.6 x 1.4 x 1.3 cm
A fat, juicy crystal with intense color, again darker than you normally see in a thumbnail Jonas specimen, and a vibrant internal brightness. Terminated all around save for a shallow grooved contact on the back face.
JONAS-31 – Tourmaline var. Rubellite on Quartz - $850 (SOLD) Jonas Mine, Itataia, Minas Gerais, Brazil Miniature, 3.8 x 1.9 x 1.7 cm
A fat, barrel-like , doubly-terminated crystal of 1.5 cm, perches on top of a translucent doubly-terminated quartz! The second crystal has one termination, and prvides a great accent and more color. Smallish in size (really a toenail and not a fully robust sized miniature) but so intricate and interesting !
JONAS-32 – Tourmaline var. Rubellite - $300 Jonas Mine, Itataia, Minas Gerais, Brazil Thumbnail, 2.6 x 1.3 x 1.1 cm
Unfortunately broken up, on either end, but a good piece of facet rough for somebody who wants to play around with cutting a Jonas gem to match the rough....you can get a few nice stones out of this one! Approx 6 grams cutting rough here
JONAS-33 – Tourmaline var. Rubellite - $1250 (SOLD) Jonas Mine, Itataia, Minas Gerais, Brazil Miniature, 3.7 x 0.8 x 0.7 cm
A gorgeous, gemmy, vibrantly lustrous crystal with the top internal brightness and surface lustre - when combined, these qualities are like no other rubellite. The photos cannot do it justice!
JONAS-34 – Tourmaline var. Rubellite - $75 (SOLD) Jonas Mine, Itataia, Minas Gerais, Brazil Thumbnail, 2.9 x 1.0 x 0.5 cm
An unusual flattish crystal, with little depth to it...very rare as most are symmetric from the pocket. There are a few small dings on either edge, but still it displays well and has excellent gemminess along with the classic color.
JONAS-35 – Tourmaline var. Rubellite - $400 Jonas Mine, Itataia, Minas Gerais, Brazil Miniature, 3.6 x 0.4 x 0.4 cm
A slender, very gemmy, lustrous crystal of typical color and lustre for the pocket. It is beautiful and of high quality, just a little too slender to fetch a much higher price - but not by much! This is an excellent representative example from this famous pocket.
JONAS-36 – Tourmaline var. Rubellite - $250 (SOLD) Jonas Mine, Itataia, Minas Gerais, Brazil Thumbnail, 2.1 x 0.8 x 0.5 cm
A very sharp thumbnail composed of several parallel crystals, exceptionally gemmy and with the vibrant classic color for this pocket. I left the pocket clay on the back face on this one, which you can see from behind. The crystal is so gemmy that you are looking right through it, in fact, to the mm-thick layer of attached kaolinite clay on the backside.
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