Special Auction - Pieces from the Legendary Ron Romanella

We present this week a special auction featuring minerals and gems the legendary Ron Romanella.  This introductory auction provides a well-rounded sampling of the pieces that Ron had for sale over the years, and there will be more to come, selectively placed in our mixed auctions throughout the year.    

Ron was born February 28, 1932 and passed away October 24, 2022.  He was a well-known gem and mineral dealer from New York City.  He studied mineralogy at Columbia School of Mines, and he was mentored by Dr. Frederick Pough of the American Museum of Natural History, and learned about the business side from well-known mineral dealers Hugh Ford and Maurice Hammoneau.  Ron himself was a mentor to other successful East Coast mineral dealers such as Larry Conklin, Herb Obodda and even employed Dave Wilber for a time.  He largely transitioned out of selling minerals as his business focused more on gems for the last few decades, and his sons Michael and Jerry have been running the family business in Scottsdale for many years now.  With that said, Ron was one of the great powerhouse mineral dealers in the US for many years in the 1950s-1960s, offering fine quality specimens and gem crystals from classic and contemporary localities.  Among his top achievements is that Ron is credited with importing the first known crystals of Tanzanite into the US in the 1960s.  He had a small private collection, mostly of gem crystals and from places he had travelled, as shown here.