The Vault - Fine Mineral Specimens for the Sophisticated Mineral Collector

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TAN1 - Tanzanite - SOLD
Merelani Mines, Arusha, Tanzania
miniature, 3.3 x 3.1 x 1.5 cm

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ex. Dr. Edward David

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A specimen of surpassing quality, with both gemminess and GEM VALUE going for it. This is a NATURAL tanzanite without having been heated to enhance the blues at the expense of the red hue. This piece is the most strongly trichroic tanzanite crystal I have ever had to offer. It glows with rich colors: blue, purple, and particularly red/maroon along the c-axis. The pictures only approximate the intensity. Moreover, it is a super-sharp, fully terminated crystal of the highest quality in terms of sharpness of form and fine termination. It has lustre like glass. this is a KILLER and of such quality that it is a miracle it was not cut for facet rough (certainly , though, it could be). This is the finest tanzanite I am aware of that is currently on the open market - I have seen 3 larger and more expensive (one heated, among them), but this is the finest in overall quality. I obtained this from Ed in a deal some time ago and he told me at the time that he had gottne this by request, upon asking Bryan Leees to find him the best possible miniature at the time (mid-1990s).

D06-131 - Tourmaline on Smoky Quartz with Tourmaline - SOLD
Paprok, Kunar Province, Afghanistan
cabinet, 12 x 11 x 7 cm

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A rare "bubblegum pink" on matrix! And what matrix! The tourmaline is pristine and free of damage , complete all around except only a small bit on the backside where an attached, but broken , crystal had been removed. The size of the tourmaline is 10 x 5 x 4.5 cm. The smoky quartz is pristine and free of damage, complete all around . As i said, it is remarkably unrepaired and pristine despite the obvious tendency to have a big tourmaline fall off a large matrix even in situ, before minign disrupts a pocket. The tourmaline color is what we call "bubblegum pink" and is the top richness of that color type (particularly under good lighting!). There are other matrix pinks, but i think the overall juxtaposition of the smoky and tourmaline rising above it so majestically, and the delicate accent of the "v" of 2 gem tourmalines of entirely different habit at its base, makes this piece special and truly elegant. There is a third, small, pink tourmaline between the "v" crystals, which is reflective of the large crystal atop in form. So, the piece is very complementary in its arrangement of 2 different tourmaline styles. Dealing in high end tourmalines is tricky. there is so much personal variation in taste and style! But, I think this is pretty unanimously "great". The condition, and the accent of the secondary tourmalines, take this beyond great though, and into the realm of the truly finest matrix tourmalines one can own. It has been in two private collections in the last decade since it was mined, and not on the public market at any time that I know of. Comes with custom lucite base for easy display.

PR03 - Wulfenite - SOLD
Red Cloud Mine, Trigo Mts, La Paz Co., Arizona, USA
cabinet, 13.5 x 8.3 x 6.2 cm

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ex. Dr. Eugene Meieran

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An incredible stakeholder's specimen from the 1997 excavations, with huge crystals that are ISOLATED on matrix and remarkably without any repairs. The large crystal is 1.25 inches, over 3 cm. Unarguably one of the top pieces of the find, chosen as his pick by Gene Meieran BEFORE the public sale of the material through Wayne Thompson (Gene had an early pick as a financier of the project): chosen for combination of crystal size and isolation of those crystals on matrix (as he prefers big crystals). There are richer specimens, with more coverage, from the find - but those were not the criteria by which this was chosen and it stands out for the stark aesthetics you seldom see, and lack of repairs. There are but a few of this calibre, overall, though. The locality is not only now defunct, but reclaimed.

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Rob Lavinsky, rob@irocks.com

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