APH1307
Aphthitalite
U.S. Potash mine, Carlsbad, New Mexico
Cabinet, 13.6 x 9.5 x 5.9 cm
SOLD
What at first appears to be a matrix specimen is really a cluster of fine aphthitalite crystals to 4 cm across, that have grown over a rather thick, earlier generation of smaller and lesser quality crystals of the same species. The tabular crystals are glassy and gemmy and colorless. The largest crystal has visible yet faint phantoms that parallel the crystal growth. As is inevitable, there is some contact, especially to the underlying crystals, but that contact scarcely diminishes the beauty and value of the specimen.