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FROM THE COLLECTION OF CHARLES LOCKE KEY Swakopmund, Namibia collected over 40 years and featuring: large suites of Kalahari Manganese Field minerals of all kinds; Namibia suites of Oranje River, Brandberg and Goboboseb Quartz; Erongo Mountain minerals and other Namibian Classics; Congo and Kaokoveld Dioptase & malachite; and a diverse Worldwide Suite
K-185 - SPHALERITE included in Quartz - $400 Billinton Mine, near Kuruman, South Africa small cabinet, 7.1 x 2.8 x 1.7 cm ex. Charlie Key
A really neat locality piece with an approximately 8mm amber-colored, gorgeous sphaerlite crystal completely enclosed within the tip of this undamaged quartz point!
CKTSR-1 - SHATTUCKITE on PRIMARY MALACHITE on SHATTUCKITE-included QUARTZ - $4000 Kaokoveld, Namibia miniature, 5 x 2.2 x 1.2 cm ex. Charlie Key
Amazing, visually stunning, piece with electric and chatoyant deep green, primary malachite perched on the blue quartz! The deep blue color is caused by shattuckite investing the quartz, so its sparkly and bright, not dull. A single non-included clear quartz is in the middle of the natural pedestal that serves as a base for the 2-inch , doubly-terminated malachite crystal! The color contrast is simply AMAZING. Note also the accenting shattuckite rosette atop the upper-left of the malachite !
CKTSR-2 - ETTRINGITE with Gaudefroyite - $3000 SOLD N'Chwaning II Mine, Kalahari Manganese Fields, Northern Cape Province, South Africa miniature, 5 x 5 x 2.25 cm ex. Charlie Key
A glowing yellow cluster of large, translucent, fat ettringite crystals on a bit of calcite matrix, and with contrasting black gaudefroyite upon the right side. The large crystal is fully terminated, though admittedly has a contact on the left side where it grew against another crystal no longer present. Still, the upright, freestanding crystal is extremely dramatic, is complete; and such crystals are rare. Usually they are flatlaying, whereas this is freestanding and vertical! The smaller crystal at the base is fully terminated and complete. Comes with custom lucite base. Comes with custom lucite display base.
CKTSR-3 - HENRITERMIERITE (XLS TO 1 CM) - $3000 SOLD Wessels Mine, Kalahari Manganese Fields, Northern Cape Province, South Africa miniature, 4.5 x 4 x 3 cm ex. Charlie Key
An extremely fine specimen with both significance AND aesthetics, for this VERY RARE garnet species (i believe it is the only octohedral garnet?!). Charlie valued this at $4-5k, frankly. He felt, and I agree, that it is among the best of species. Not only do you have a large dominant crystal on a rich matrix, but the lustre is so sharp and bright that at first glance yoU THINK this is a magnetite from switzerland and NOT a rare manganese fields mineral!
CKTSR-4 - SHIGAITE on RHODOCHROSITE - $15000 SOLD N'Chwaning II Mine, Kalahari Manganese Fields, Northern Cape Province, South Africa miniature, 3.2 x 2.5 x 1.5 cm ex. Charlie Key
A beautiful specimen, complete 360 degrees, hosting a translucent 2 cm shigaite perched on sparkly rhodo crystals! This is a piece of major importance in the world of rarities, and Charlie felt that for combination of size and aesthetics it was the best miniature from the find of the early 1980s that he could keep in his suite of personal Kalahari rarities of miniature size - this was in fact the pride of the collection, I'd say. it is NOT the fragile, thin, disclike crystal you expect to see form looking at the recently mined material. it is very thick, sturdy, and easily packed for shipping. Although a "toenail" size, it is important enough to take its place in a miiatures or rarities suite of stature, and is really irreplaceable.
CKTSR-5 - CALCITE (TWINNED) - $1450 SOLD Wessels Mine, Kalahari Manganese Fields, Northern Cape Province, South Africa miniature, 5.5 x 5 x 3 cm ex. Charlie Key
Sharp, really amazing twinning displayed with unique aesthetics! The 4 cm twinned crystal is perched up on two rhomds, each showing raised and unusual faces but themselves not twinned. Stunning, in person! And, complete all around, 360.
CKTSR-6 - INESITE - $4500 SOLD Wessels Mine, Kalahari Manganese Fields, Northern Cape Province, South Africa miniature, 6 x 3.5 x 2.5 cm ex. Charlie Key
Another superb example of inesite from this famous find! CHERRY RED, with translucency and glassy lustre, there really was only one pocket of this quality EVER.
CKTSR-7 - KUTNAHORITE ON MANGANOCALCITE PS. CALCITE TWIN - $3000 Wessels Mine, Kalahari Manganese Fields, Northern Cape Province, South Africa miniature, 4 x 3 x 2 cm ex. Charlie Key
A complex specimen featuring sheaves of kutnahorite perched upon a twinned calcite crystal that has been completely replaced by manganoan calcite.... FLOATER! Unique, in my experience, for this particular combinaiton of qualities
CKTSR-8 - QUARTZ with SMOKY QUARTZ - $3000 SOLD Namaqualand, Namibia small cabinet, 8 x 6 x 3.5 cm ex. Charlie Key
Incredible contrast in two common varietals of quartz, resulting in a NOT so common specimen! This is complete and well formed all around! Comes with custom lucite display base.
CKTSR-9 - FLUORITE - $1250 SOLD Okaruso, Namibia miniature, 5.5 x 4 x 3.5 cm ex. Charlie Key
A really gemmy, outstanding example of the dark green , glassy fluorite that made this locality famous in the early 1980s. Although mining is going on now, the quality like this hasn't been seen again. BEST COLOR!
CKTSR-10 - MAGNETITE in Chalcopyrite - $1500 Aggenys Mine, Kalahari Manganese Field, Northern Cape Province, South Africa small cabinet, 7 x 6 x 4 cm ex. Charlie Key
Who knew?! I had never hear dof anything from this mine except a few strangely formed rhodos, til Charlie's Collection surfaced. He has a whole suite of weird sulfide combinations from this locality, for example this one featuring SHARP alpine-quality magnetite in contrasting chalcopyrite matrix. The largest magnetite is 2 cm across! This is the best matrix specimen out of the whole lot of about 2 flats, which he had acucmulated over the years from a worker at the mine.
CKTSR-11 - INDICOLITE (NEUSCHWABEN TOURMALINE) cut & rough set - $2750 SOLD Neuschwaben (Neu Schwaben), Karibib District, Erongo Region, Namibia thumbnail, 2.25 x 1.5 x 1.2 cm ex. Charlie Key
GEM WEIGHT: 1.54 carats Extremely fine crystal and a matching cut stone of this classic deep blue, unheated, natural indicolite that once set the standard for blue hue in gem tourmalines.
CKTSR-12 - DIOPTASE on chrysocolla - $4000 Kaokoveld, Namibia small cabinet, 6.5 x 5.5 x 5 cm ex. Charlie Key
A beautiful specimen with unusual contrast both in color and in relief...most Kaokoveld dioptases are pretty flat on the matrix but this one features fat, 3-D crystals that are themselves standing largely free atop a rounded knoll of matrix, for double effect. The piece has a 3-cm-long cluster atop with two intergrown, doubly-terminated diop crystals hangiging out into space. It is VERY dramatic. The crystals are 2.5 and 2 cm in size, and again are doubly-terminated. Smaller crystals provide accent. At first glance, we had appraised this at a much higher price. On very close inspection, you can see a small chip, probably one form geological time that has been partly healed over because it is so hard to see, in the left-rear side of the smaller crystal in the cluster. I have to be hnest and admit this detracts a bit, from ONE angle out of four for potential display, and from the overall quality of condition...but visually, its really a pretty trivial damage and in a backwater spot, so you get a lot of visual impact for the buck on this specimen ; and it remains in my mind a very significant and impactful Kaokoveld dioptase.
CKTSR-13 - MALACHITE on CHRYSOCOLLA stalactite - $2400 Star of the Congo Mine, Lubumbashi, Shaba (Katanga), Congo (former Zaïre) small cabinet, 7 x 5 x 3.5 cm ex. Charlie Key
Quite simply, for the color contrast and striking sculptural quality of form, one of the most striking stalactites of any mineral that I have ever seen! Wow! I have never seen this combination in such quality, before. Comes with custom lucite display base.
CKTSR-14 - ETTRINGITE on CALCITE - $750 N'Chwaning II Mine, Kalahari Manganese Fields, Northern Cape Province, South Africa miniature, 5.5 x 3.5 x 2.5 cm ex. Charlie Key
A beautiful piece with the most intense lemon yellow hue! This specimen has several large scaleohedral calcites completely draped on one side by lemon yellow ettringite druse. It is just COLOR. The very tippy-tips are cleaved slightly, but it does not detract from the show value of the specimen at all since it is not readily noticeable.
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