PALA-144
Kunzite in Matrix
Anita Mine, Hiriart Hill, Pala District, San Diego Co., California, USA
Large Cabinet, 17.0 x 2.0 x 12.5 x 7.4 cm
Ex. William (Bill) Larson
SOLD
This is a spectacular display piece, museum sized and of high quality, showcasing a rare large kunzite In MATRIX from the county. The undamaged crystal has a rich pink color, and is DOUBLY-terminated, complete at both ends. The crystal is not broken off from or repaired onto its matrix - rather, it was very, very carefully excavated to leave a stable anchorage behind it. It measures 18 x 5 x 2 cm in size and is complete. There is a thin crack in the middle, but the matrix stably holds it together. In person, it is more clearly seen how sharp the leftmost termination is, in particular. The color is excellent, particularly for the mine and the County in general. The style and the matrix together are uniquye - it is obviously not from the common places we see, Brazil or Afghanistan. And, as it is in matrix, this has to rank highly among all kunzite found here, from several localities, over the years since the early 1900s when it was found in San Diego and named in honor of the gemologist GF Kunz. Many people do not realize that, yes, San Diego was the type lcoale for kunzite! But, specimens of this magnitude do not come up often, and so its easy to forget that bit of history in light of the contemporary production from Afghanistan and Brazil. This is the rare county piece, though, that compares admirably to ANYTHING mother nature has produced elsewhere, AND comes from the USA. I rank it a major specimen for any collector of gem crystals or US classics in this size range. NOTE: this is from a private collection in Germamny which was broken up several years ago, and not from the Larson/PALA collection, though it fit well within this update to include it here.