SM23-73
Beryl var. Red Beryl
Ruby Violet claims, Beaver Co., Utah, USA
Thumbnail, 2.6 x 2.2 x 1.3 cm
SOLD

This is a significant thumbnail of gemmy, intensely saturated Red Beryl or "bixbite" as it is sometimes called (but that name leads to confusion with Bixbyite that is found in the same occurrence). It is essentially Emerald, which is naturally colored red; the color is caused by trace amounts of manganese in substitution. This piece consists of two crystals in parallel growth and a third growing at a diagonal. The large crystal in the pair is 1.5 cm in length with its parallel companion at 0.8 cm and the diagonal one is also 0.8 mm in length. All three crystals here are doubly terminated or nearly so. Red Beryls above 1 cm in size with rich color, limited rhyolite matrix inclusions and no cracking, are nearly impossible to find anymore. These are astonishingly rare in the world, and no more are currently mined today of any significance. This thumbnail specimen is dramatic and balanced with great composition. It has the rich color you want most and stands out on a shelf with more impact than such things normally have. It makes for a shocking thumbnail specimen you can see from far away. The gemminess is unusual for this material - not only rare in nature, but rarely surviving the cutters looking for crystals with gems to cut out for the gem trade, where it can be valued highly even in small stones.