A thin crust of microcrystalline albite is covered by gorgeous, sparkling, glassy macrocrystallized albites, to 3.2 cm across. The colorless albites are mostlly tabular, glassy and gemmy, with the most incredible pearlescent luster you can imagine. They do NOT look like feldspar, but more like some freaky gem crystals or brilliant topaz. A few crystals appear to be twinned. Amidst this find, this is one of the larger pieces. The right half is mostly massive, where it contacted matrix. The specimen can be left large, or trimmed in half through the middle to make a more fully crystallized plate measuring about 3 x 3 inches in size. However, given the small size of the find here, we left it big for the moment because of the overall import of the size, and because the more massive side can also act as a natural pedestal to mount the top , better crystallized area, vertically for display. Otherwise it sits nicely horizontal as shown, too! Very nice, large display plate, at a reasonable price for the quality of the material.

Nestled on matrix here is a cluster of are pearlescent and translucent crystals of clear-to-white albite, to 2.5 cm across. The largest crystal is also twinned. Along with the albite is a tabular, metallic, black-silvery hematite crystal that looks for all the world like a rosette of hematite from Switzerland ("eisenrosen") . The hematite, which should obviously be considered quite large for the locale based on what else I have here, is 2.5 cm across. There is minor peripheral contact to the hematite cluster on its top-rear faces but the display side is impressive and i do believe this to be a FAIRLY important US specimen. In fact, this pocket produced seemingly the only good hematite rosettes of such robust style that I am aware of from the East Coast of the USA (and I asked the same of several museum curators who confirmed this as well). As a combo specimen, it is also aesthetic and displays well.

Aesthetically emplaced among a nest of lustrous and translucent, white albite crystals to 2 cm in length is a cluster of two superbly crystallized, intergrown hematite rosettes (or "eisenrosen"). They look for all the world like a rosette of hematite from Switzerland ("eisenrosen") . The larger cluster of parallel-grown crystals of hematite, which should obviously be considered quite large for the locale based on what else I have here, is 2.6 cm across. It has some minor contact where it grew against chlorite matrix on the right side, and only a tiny nick on the back side of the larger hematite keeps it from being technically pristine and it is otherwise complete. An outstanding combination of color and texture contrasts, we feel this is a major US specimen for the species and locality. In fact, this pocket produced seemingly the only good hematite rosettes of such robust style that I am aware of from the East Coast of the USA (and I asked the same of several museum curators who confirmed this as well). As a combo specimen, it is also aesthetic and displays well.

A superb specimen of perfection all around, and complete and display-worthy from either side. The main crystal is 2 cm across, large for the locale. A small allanite crystal seems to be included within, at the base. The crystal reaches several mm thick, robust for this style and locality. It has literally perfect aesthetics and is a significant thumbnail specimen of competitive level for the species. A note about coloration: In fluorescent lights, these crystals look more amber-brown than in halogen lights, where they take on a more orange-red hue. When backlit moderately, as shown, they take on a nice red glowing color. All photos here are taken under sunlight balanced halogen, with moderate backlighting. Joe Budd photos.These were found at the classic old French locality for rare earth species, in the late 1970s, and have until now been hidden away by the collector. For sheer quality and beauty, many collectors have long considered the gemmy rare earth crystals from here to be among the best of their species. The productive specimen zone at the locality is, I am told reliably, simply mined out and gone now.

This crystal is a pristine, complete, translucent jeweel measuring 7 x 3 x 2 cm in size and perched atop a small natural pedestal of crystallized albite matrix. I think the pics say it all! It is SUPERB in quality and among the best brazilianites for the size range that I could imagine.

On May 15, 1982, a famous specimen called the "Pala Princess" was unearthed by Roland Reed, mine owner. It was one repaired large plate consisting of a half a dozen pieces, 3 of them of some major consequence for the County and for US beryls in general. The piece was judged by John Sinkankas at the time to be the finest beryl specimen found in North America to date. This is the third of the larger plates that made up that piece, as shown in Sinkankas' updated book , Gems of North America, published shortly thereafter. Note he erroneously attributed the find to 1992, not 1982. In 2003, the plate was purchased from a private collector by Irv Brown and Stuart Wilensky; and disassembled into its parts, which were then trimmed and prepped individually to yield 3 major, unrepaired, (and much more) aesthetic morganite specimens. This is the third of those specimens, and it has never been for sale because Irv traded it directly to Chuck within the week. This piece would have comprised about 20% of the original surface area of the specimen, and features one of the larger crystals. You can see the unique nature of the piece, in its multiple coloration of both blue aqua and pink morganite, from the pics. In person, it is more obvious. This is a major County specimen, with incredibly neat provenance and history, the likes of which hasn't been mined since. Now, as opposed to having a too-large specimen with seven repairs and some damage about it, we have several MAJOR and pristine, unrepaired specimens which are individually of as much significance, I would think - but finer in quality.