Treasure
Cruzeiro mine, São José da Safira, Doce valley, Minas Gerais, Brazil
Size: 15 x 5.4 x 3.7 cm
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This is a dramatic high class rubellite from the Cruzeiro Mine with a stunning size of 15 cm!
The crystal is all gemmy and lustrous and shows rich raspberry red color that turns into a darker cherry red towards the termination.
Quality and aesthetic are absolutely gorgeous here!
The tourmaline is set on a lovely crystallized lepidolite/cleavelandite matrix with smaller tourmaline side crystals.
There are some very well done and hardly visible repairs and restorations. Apart from that the crystal is in outstanding condition.
Have a look on our video which grants a better look on the fantastic quality and color of this fine rubellite!
Mt Xuebaoding, Pingwu Co., Mianyang Prefecture, Sichuan Province, China
Size: 11.4 x 11.2 x 9.6 cm
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This is a world class cassiterite specimen that features a huge crystal of jet-black cyclically twinned cassiterite with a total size of over 11 cm!
With a total specimen size of 11.4 cm that means the main crystal occupies the whole dimension from bottom to top while played about by silvery books of muscovite.
Condition is virtually flawless with only minor contacts around the lower periphery. The whole main edge and faces are outstanding, sharp, lustrous and very attractively structured!
As both sides are very well developed and attractively composed this specimen doesn’t have an obvious front or backside but it's a sweeping sight all around!
We had the specimen for cleaning in the M.C.P. lab with Federico Pezzotta who explicitly counts this specimen among the top 5 cassiterite he has ever seen or heard about!
The cassiterite is not repaired, only two small patches of muscovite matrix are restored to keep the focus on the crystal which is not just beautiful but utterly stunning in person!
This specimen is a rare occasion for an important world class cassiterite from the famous deposits of Mt. Xuebaoding in China which yielded specimen quality material for over 30 years while only rarely reaching quality and size even near what we can see here!
Nagar District, Gilgit-Baltistan, Pakistan
Size: 8.5 x 6.2 x 5.5 cm
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This apatite specimen from Nagar district is absolutely outstanding both in quality and aesthetics!
The crystal itself has a size of impressive 5.6 cm in diameter and is set on a beautiful silvery muscovite matrix.
But the apatite is not only large.
It has incredible luster on all sides, it is gemmy and with a vibrant pink color through and through!
Some intergrown muscovite even improves the overall aesthetics as it is all perfect and lovely!
The crystal itself is in fantastic condition. There are two tiny and practically invisible fills, the rest is just perfect!
Aesthetics, size and crystal quality are all top notch on this one in a million apatite specimen!
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This huge heart-shaped etched topaz is one of the largest and most spectacular specimens from the one-time find near Fazenda do Centro in Brazil!
The shape, the quality, the sheer size and the utter importance of this enormous specimen is exceptional to say the least!
Despite its heavy weight there is no damage or even abrasions visible which seems almost impossible considering how it was was dug out of the Brazilian soil.
When you turn the piece around you see a staggering richness of etched faces, some with lizard-scale like structure, some with sharp and lustrous forms like polished glass. At one side you can even see part the original topaz as a flat and highly lustrous crystal face. Through this face you can see deep into the glassy and transparent topaz which feels like diving into a cave of wonders!
What's special and unusual as well is the bi-color characteristic of light blue at the center with champagne colored edges. Absolutely stunning and beautiful in person!
Shigar Valley, Skardu District, Gilgit-Baltistan, Pakistan
Size: 8.2 x 7 x 4.9 cm
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A “V” shaped group of two high quality aquamarine crystals, associated with some jet-black schorl is set atop a marvelous white adularia matrix! This highly attractive piece is a complete floater and free of any damage! The aquamarine is glassy with perfect wet-look luster! Both crystals show nice bevelled terminations that are all complete and without a single scratch! The color is charming and easily stands out against the black and white background! The shigar valley is one of the most productive beryl deposits worldwide and has produced some of the finest aquamarine specimens over the past decades. Still, pieces of such excellent quality and aesthetics are rare on the market, especially in such flawless condition!
Tormiq valley, Haramosh Mts., Skardu District, Baltistan, Northern Areas, Pakistan
Size: 5.8 x 2.9 x 1.6 cm
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Rutile from the Tormiq area is extremely rare and I have never seen a specimen coming even close to the remarkable size and quality of this specimen!
It is 6.1 cm long, perfectly developed and super lustrous! A small white albite cluster and several rutile side-crystals make for a great outline around the solid, gemmy, blood red rutile main crystal.
The piece is repaired once in the middle where it was taken apart in the lab of Federico Pezzotta and professionally repaired and filled.
The uniqueness of the specimen in respect of size, quality and astounding beauty certainly justifies that decision.
The backside is an old contact that is re-crystallized and overgrown with albite.
It's truly a breathtaking specimen of stunning aesthetics and fabulous quality!
Tsumeb Mine, Otjikoto Region, Tsumeb, Namibia
Size: 8.1 x 7.1 x 4.7 cm
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The cobalt-bearing variant of smithsonite is an extremely rare species with finds almost exclusively in the famed Tsumeb mine. This specimen is a masterpiece that combines wonderful crystal quality and gorgeous aesthetics! The largest and most impressive crystal is set at the very center, surrounded by a three-dimensional landscape of smaller crystals which hang there like ripe pink grapes. The crystal has 2 cm in diameter, is lustrous, clear and with lovely pink color. All around the crystals are just brilliant and beautifully embedded in a black manganese matrix. This is certainly a significant and important specimen! It comes with a label from Dr. Reinhard Dallinger, who also had it depicted in the Supplement to the Mineralogical Record, “Minerals Collections in Austris” from 2015.
Shigar Valley, Skardu District, Gilgit-Baltistan, Pakistan
Size: 9.2 x 7 x 4 cm
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Super aesthetic top-notch aquamarine on snow white feldspar with spots of black schorl! The aquamarine comes as a cluster of three interlocked crystals the largest of which stands 6 cm tall with a diameter of 1.65 cm. It shows superb gemmy quality with a complex, highly lustrous and flawless termination. The water-blue color is realistic in the pictures and easily stands out from the white feldspar matrix. Sweeping aesthetics, exceptional crystal quality, best condition and very good hand-size all combine to an outstanding first grade specimen!
Paprok, Nuristan Province, Afghanistan
Size: 13.1 x 3.1 x 2.5 cm
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Just the way we like our tourmalines: Colorful, brilliant, impressive and with a bevelled, pointed termination! The base is encircled by attached side crystals like apple green oriels around the pink core. Further up, the crystal is getting even more stunning. As the color turns to an intense crome-green, the brilliance is getting truly exciting! Gemmy and lustrous to the most stunning extent! The termination is very well developed: A sharp pyramidal shape with a flawless tip and nice modifications. The specimen has one repair but is otherwise in very best condition. Marvelous and absolutely striking for its excellent quality and the sheer size!
Pyingyi Taung, Male, Singu Township, Pyin-Oo-Lwin District, Mandalay Division, Burma (Myanmar)
Size: 7.6 x 4.3 x 3.3 cm
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In 2018 a new tourmaline pocket has been opened in the Pyingyi Taung region, somewhere close to the village Let Pan Hla, and the found specimens by far outshine all previous finds of this mineral in the region! The intensive cherry-red color as seen in the pictures is not exaggerated at all and best sparkling luster even emphasizes the pristine quality and aesthetics! Two prominent main crystals are set on a matrix, covered in smaller pink side-crystals and white feldspar. Both crystals are flawless, gemmy and of striking color! The crystals are about equal in size with around 2 cm in diameter and nicely contrast from the much smaller crystallized matrix. Most spectacular about this new find is but not the without question fantastic color but the exceptionally complex crystal architecture! The crystals are developed with almost unreal precission and sharpness, like CNC milled and polished to highest luster! The polyhedral crystals, the intensive cherry-red color and irresistible aesthetics make this a remarkable rarity of exceptional character. Absolutely mesmerizing and the best of the find!
Paprok, Nuristan Province, Afghanistan
Size: 10.5 x 6.8 x 6 cm
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While most tourmaline specimens from this important region near the Paprok village are loose single crystals, this tourmaline is set on a beautiful matrix which separates it from the bulk. The matrix is an ideal arrangement of white albite and dark smoky quartz which very much supports the rainbow colored tourmaline! The tourmaline itself is a very catchy high class crystal and impresses with it's distinctive color zoning which is exceedingly rare in such fascinating extent! Pink, white, blue, green. Below that a zone of pale skin color over a dark green base. Very impressive, beautiful and unique, especially for its gemmy crystal quality. The crystal size is 3.3 x 2.5 cm which makes for a perfect proportion and nice cabinet size!
Tokovaya river, Ekaterinburg, Middle Urals, Urals Region, Russia
Size: 7.7 x 4.4 x 3.1 cm
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This single prominent Tokovaya river emerald crystal is 7,6 cm long and 1,2 cm thick and shows intensively green color from bottom to top! The quality is absolutely beautiful as well, especially towards the terminations where it gets increasingly glassy and bright!
The crystal is set on a characteristic black mica schist matrix with two smaller emerald side-crystals which makes for a perfectly balanced and super aesthetic specimen!
Remarkably enough for such a long and free standing crystal it is NOT repaired or restored and free of any damage! This fact is even more exciting when considering that most crystals of comparable quality go to the cutter and are not preserved for the specimen collectors.
Our video shows a better 360° impression of the piece that has so much to offer in respect of crystal quality and aesthetics!