CH22-13
Doyleite
Jiepailing Mine, Yaogangxian W-Sn ore field, Yizhang Co., Chenzhou, Hunan, China
Cabinet, 11.8 x 8.7 x 3.8 cm
Ex. Dr. Robert Lavinsky
$5,000.00 Payment Plan Available
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In the early 2000s, the Rocksmiths brought out some incredible specimens of ....something weird. At the time, we had no clear answer on what to label these things, and various names abounded on labels (woodwardite, doyleite, or more often gibbsite). This was one of the better examples for color, size, and shape, that I bought at the time and put away. It is unusually 3-dimensional and mounded, while most were flat. The color is a rich, soft, pastel blue. The weight is what it truly bizarre...it feels like you are holding a piece of aluminum foil, rather than a mineral specimen or rock. It is a very lightweight, rare species, and the heft (or lack of) just surprises you even when expected. Doyleite is a rare aluminum trihydroxide mineral, and later analyses showed these were doyleite while similarly looking material from another locale was gibbsite.