This remarkable quartz specimen looks like it is actually a painting. The photos look the same. The crystals are so textbook, so sharp, so stereotypically perfect, that the piece looks faked. But, it was collected by a major strahler many years ago (Kasper Farner), and actually is intact and unrepaired save only for a tiny minor restoration to the back of one quartz point. It is complete all around, 360 degrees, and just as striking from every angle. It is extremely difficult to collect these quartzes in their hard granite matrix from the alpine clefts while hanging off rappelling gear. This specimen, to me, epitomizes the finest qualities of a Swiss matrix smoky quartz. The photos are fine, but the crystals are so gemmy and the color so smoky and pure that it is simply better in person. Joe Budd Photos.