Analcime on Microcline, et al.

Item Description

The Poudrette Quarry at Mont Saint-Hilaire in Canada is one of the most mineralogically interesting, diverse and specimen-rich localities in the world. Over 400 of minerals species have been found at MSH and the entry on mindat.org states that it's the type locality for 73 species! One of the great aspects of the specimens from this famous locale is that you can often find specimens featuring many species together, like this impressive cabinet display specimen that is loaded with many well-formed, good sized, white to off-white colored trapezohedral crystals of Analcime measuring up to 3.0 cm across, sitting atop a big blocky crystal of Microcline, but the associations really make the piece special as you can see small pinkish colored Serandite crystals, along with beige-white Polylithionite aggregates, plus dark reddish-brown Rhodochrosite crystals, and small deep red crystals of Manganoneptunite, with little spots of virtually black Aegirine. The piece can be displayed easily in a case to view from a few feet away, but it's also a lot of fun to get up close with a loupe or under the microscope to see all the little features under magnification. Overall the piece is in good shape, though not completely undamaged. It's rare to find such diverse and show full-sized cabinet sized pieces of this material on the market now, especially since collecting at the quarry has been highly restricted in recent years, so fresh material is few and far between. Don't miss out on this wonderful big specimen from this beloved locality.
Valued $1,500
Ex Gerry Morvell Collection, with a label from Willis' Earth Treasures - Minerals.