Andorite (rare doubly-terminated crystal group)

Item Description

From the historic find in November 2004. Andorite is a rare lead, silver, antimony sulfosalt which was named for the Hungarian mineral collector Andor von Semsey (1833-1923), who holds a remarkable distinction for having two mineral species named after him (Andorite and semseyite). I personally acquired the entire lot of all the best specimens that came into the U.S. during 2004. Everybody agreed that this discovery produced the finest crystals of Andorite in the world, and completely redefined Andorite as a crystallized species. These specimens were found in the same vein system that was worked by the father of Bolivian mineralogy, Federico Ahlfeld. The attractive miniature specimen is a layered group of fine, classic, thick, steel-grey, tabular crystals of Andorite (some of which are actually doubly-terminated!). I can see a minor amount of Pyrite on the piece. The piece is in good shape and the quality is excellent, but one end of the piece is contacted, so only a portion of it is doubly-terminated or at least "multi"-terminated. It is nearly impossible to find any specimens of Andorite from San Jose on the market today, and prior to the 2004 find, the locality had not produced specimens in MANY years. A wonderful opportunity to own a great display specimen of this rare mineral species. Valued at $950 in the inventory.