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Mineral Specimens with Dioptase
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6.7 x 4.5 x 4.0 cm. Dioptase is known from a few world localities in superb quality specimens, but recently there was a find of new material in the Pool Region of the Congo. These specimens show great color, with larger sized crystals and excellent gemminess. This particular specimen is filled with sharp, rich emerald green color Dioptase forming a very attractive three-dimensional specimen. The largest crystal measures 9 mm. This find seemed to be somewhat limited, and hopefully will produce more of this fine Dioptase.
3.9 x 3.0 x 2.0 cm. A beautiful and unusual combination piece for this locality, where dioptase is quite rare and when found, usually is in isolated specks on ugly rock. This specimen has beautiful, bright green dioptase crystals perched on a rolling carpet of powder-blue chrysocolla. Ex. Harold Urish Collection.
1.9 x 1.1 x 1.0 cm. A beautiful, gemmy and lustrous, rich emerald-green, doubly terminated dioptase crystal from the Tsumeb Mine. Complete-all-around, the out of sight contacted back, with a bit of contrasting calcite, is a nice accent. Ex. Irv Brown Thumbnail Collection.
5.4 x 4.0 x 2.8 cm. Gorgeous, gemmy, deep emerald-green dioptase crystals fill a cavernous vug surrounded by powder-blue chrysocolla and accented by a lustrous, amber/tan, 1.4 cm, anglesite crystal from the Omaue Mine of Namibia. Anglesite is rare from the Omaue Mine, so this is a very showy and rare combination specimen.
1.7 x 0.7 x 0.7 cm. A gemmy, transparent crystal, pristine and complete-all-around. It has some veils, but makes a superb thumbnail. Ex. Charlie Key.
2.2 x 2.0 x 1.8 cm. When it comes to Dioptase, there is no locality greater or more prolific than Tsumeb for quantity and quality. This specimen exhibits the top emerald green color (impossible to replicate in photos) that made these specimens so famous. The crystals themselves, are in very good condition overall, and even pass light when backlit. The final touch to these sharp, lustrous trigonal crystals is the fact that they are sitting on a mound of classic contrasting white Calcite on matrix. Ex. Brian Kosnar Collection.
12.0 x 11.0 x 6.7 cm. Sparkling, gemmy, emerald-green dioptase microcrystals cover the undulating, cabinet-sized matrix coated with contrasting, highly desirable, white calcite. All on this excellent larger specimen from the Tsumeb Mine. This striking piece is unusually highlighted with a scattering of primary malachite balls to 1.0 cm. The balls consist of tiny needles of malachite and you can see dioptase crystals on the balls. Dioptase and malachite are an uncommon association, in fact. Fascinating, choice combination material from this noted locale. Ex. Matthew Webb Collection.
3.8 x 3.2 x 1.7 cm. A 1.6-cm-long dioptase, fairly translucent, is perched on a reticulated cerussite here. A unique combination, and the only one like it I have seen amidst a small trickle of specimens from this new mine in the Kaokoveld plateau. Although not quite pristine on very close examination, it looks pristine from arms length, and anyways it is the contrast of color and geometry that so mesmerizes, here. It is, amongst so many Kaokoveld dioptase that have no associations at all with them, really surprising to me to see this one. Ex. Charlie Key.
Thumbnail (2.16 carat). Dioptase gems in sizes above 1 carat are very hard to obtain. Although not totally clean, this is overall mostly transparent, and has an even and saturated color. A beautiful rare gem. A well-cut, rare gem - notable in size - cut by Spectrum Award winner Mark Kaufman. Ex. Charlie Key.
6.9 x 5.7 x 4.8 cm. This is a colorful cluster of nearly massive dioptase, with admixed cerussite as well. From it spike out gem, elongated dioptase crystals to 2.1 cm. This is one of the few matrix specimens of this crystal style recovered from the mine as yet and who can say whether more will come? This habit of elongated crystals, in such gemminess, is really quite new, and beautiful. The important crystal is not damaged, despite its freestanding nature. It is partially coated on the backside by quartz, which helped to protect it. Ex. Charlie Key.
8.6 x 7.3 x 6.2 cm. Deep green crystals, some doubly-terminated, here reach about 1.5 cm and are clustered richly on quartz matrix. This specimen is pristine, except only for a few trivial peripheral crystals to the left or bottom depending on how it’s displayed. It looks good horizontal, and vertical both. The crystals are sharp and 3-dimensional and "pop" out at you - looking for all-the-world as if they were glued onto the quartz matrix, because they are so remarkably freestanding. A superb specimen. When shipped to us, it was a protected pocket, from which this was trimmed out carefully. Ex. Charlie Key.
6.0 x 5.9 x 3.4 cm. A remarkably unusual piece with starkly isolated crystals of dioptase perched on quartz. The razor-sharp, pristine, major dioptase crystals reach 1.9 cm, fairly good size from any locality. While not gemmy, they are quite translucent. The smaller crystals to the lower left are also complete, though show some minor contacting. This is a unique style of combination, not similar to material yet found at other dioptase localities in the isolation upon crystalline quartz matrix. Ex. Charlie Key.
4.7 x 3.6 x 2.9 cm. A beautiful specimen, really unique in aspect, featuring sharp, sword-like dioptase crystals to about 1.5 cm. They have intense color and great translucency (gemmy when backlit), just popping up out of sparkling, drusy quartz matrix. The combination is really quite unusual, and the stark contrast makes this among the most pretty, even if with smaller crystals, of the specimens from the find. Ex. Charlie Key.
2.7 x 1.1 x 1.0 cm. A beautiful, splaying cluster of seemingly twisted crystals, all with perfect terminations. The whole cluster is highly translucent and glows when backlit. A large, dramatic, full thumbnail specimen. Ex. Charlie Key.
2.5 x 1.1 x 1.0 cm. A beautiful cluster of 3 intergrown crystals, all with perfect terminations. The whole cluster is highly translucent and actually also "gemmy" in the literal sense; and glows when backlit. Complete-all-around save only a very slight small contact on the back. A large, dramatic, full thumbnail specimen. Ex. Charlie Key.
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Rob Lavinsky, rob@irocks.com
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share specimen![Dioptase from Kimbedi, Pool Region, Republic of Congo (Brazzaville) [db_pics/mdpics/MD-282551a.jpg]](db_pics/mdpics/MD-282551a.jpg)
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