- JB16-1712
- Amazonite on Albite with Smoky Quartz
- Icon Pocket, Smoky Hawk claim, Crystal Peak area, Teller Co., Colorado, USA
- Large Cabinet, 34.5 x 20.0 x 16.0 cm
This dramatic, large cabinet piece is to my mind a future "icon" of American minerals. Most people are familiar with the exceptional contemporary combinations of smoky quartz and amazonite being found yearly by the hard-working Dorris family as shown on the Weather Channel TV show, Prospectors. Some of their finds exceed all previous examples of the classic smoky & amazonite combination, such as one that sold recently for near seven figures to the Denver Museum. Nevertheless, these combination pieces are available in one flavor or another, and more have been found yearly. The aptly named "Icon Pocket," shown being collected on TV in the 2015 season of the show, is something else entirely, with unique pieces of large blue amazonite of the ideal color perched dramatically on expanses of white cleavelandite (albite) matrix instead of on the usual nest of rocky matrix of quartz. This particular specimen was the biggest piece of the pocket, and I was stunned when I saw it, about to be presented for sale at the 2016 Tucson show.
- JB17-1751
- Grossular Garnet
- Vesper Peak, Sultan District, Snohomish Co., Washington, USA
- Cabinet, 11.5 x 9.5 x 3.2 cm
Garnet from Washington state is one of those "holy grails" of collecting USA classics, but there are simply so few of any real value in a worldwide sense, compared to garnets from other locales. The best ones were said to have been collected by a team including Bart Cannon, back in the 1970s to early 1980s. This particular specimen was sold by Cannon in 1982 to collector Jack Halpern, who owned it for the following 34 years until exchanging it to me. It is simply stunning, with a unique robust color and a glass luster that these are famous for. However, I had never seen such quality of color AND luster in a specimen of this large size, before. Never cleaned or trimmed to modern standards, I have only gotten it back recently after a year in the lab.
- JB17-1729
- Rhodochrosite (shield crystals style, illustrated)
- N'Chwaning I Mine, Kuruman, Kalahari MN field, Northern Cape Province, South Africa
- Small Cabinet, 6.5 x 5.5 x 4.5 cm
Of all the specimens of rhodochrosite, and all the styles, produced by these rich Kalahari Mines in the late 1970s and early 1980s, this is among the most rare. These so-called "shield form" crystals came out of only one pocket, either in the late 1970s or early 1980s, and were never seen again. This particular specimen exhibits unusual aesthetics in that it has nice edges, whereas most are cleaved masses with broken edges showing, and this piece has combined good luster and excellent cherry color. On that fact, also, there are grades of quality even among pieces of similar color: Many have a backing of thick matrix or thick massive rhodochrosite, and so light does not transmit. This piece practically glows when backlit, and light transmits well through it. (Here it is shown with only moderate front and back lighting by halogen, but with a flashlight or LED behind it will have a deeper glow).
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