TUC18-08
Smithsonite var. Cuprian
Tsumeb Mine, Tsumeb, Otjikoto Region, Namibia
Small Cabinet, 7.2 x 4.3 x 2.5 cm
SOLD

Fine cuprian rich smithsonite from Tsumeb is rare and highly coveted. Sharp crystals are more so. GEMMY and sharp crystals, with intense color - well, these are almost never seen for sale! Nestled aesthetically in a vug of massive ore are glassy and gemmy rhombohedrons of emerald-green smithsonite. The largest of these razor-sharp rhomb's reach 1.25 cm across. Mesmerizing in their combination of sharpness and color, this is a spectacularly rare quality for this species and this material! It ranks among the top dozen green smithsonites I have seen or handled in this size range, from my experience of handling at least half a dozen major Tsumeb collections over 20 years. These are gemmy, sharp, and have the most rare green color. No other locality EVER produced anything like this in smithsonite, and it was only one or two pockets from Tsumeb over the course of 100 years of mining. This came out of an old European collection to the market in Europe, and I was shocked to see it.