Andradite Garnet var: Demantoid (superb color and size)

Item Description

A beautiful and fine quality example of these elusive Demantoid Garnets from Afghanistan that date back to the mid 2000s. When it comes to display quality Demantoid specimens, most collectors will think of either Russia, Italy or the recent Madagascar material, but when these Afghani specimens are at their best, they are truly impressive. This excellent specimen features several razor-sharp, very lustrous, translucent, wonderful glowing green color (with a blue overtone) dodecahedral crystals of Demantoid measuring a whopping 1.0 cm across sitting on matrix. The crystals are in superb condition, with no major damage I can see, and the faces on the crystals are bright and shiny, which combined with the impressive size and color, make it one of the best specimens of Demantoid I've seen from the locality. Lastly, the crystals actually display a color shift from a blue-green color to a yellow-green hue depending upon the lighting under which they're viewed. If you're a Garnet collector, or a fan of minerals from Afghanistan, this is a significant piece to add to your collection, as the size and quality of the crystal is very impressive, not just for the locality, but Demantoid around the world. Valued $3,500.
From the collection of Kurt Hefendehl (#78 AP), a well-known German collector all over Europe with worldwide contacts to dealers and collectors. He started collecting seriously at the age of 14 and his great and varied worldwide collection reached over 6000 pieces. He was very active mineralogically until shortly before his passing in 2020 at the age of 82. Considering his collection had a large number of pieces, it still had an unusually high standard of quality from most worldwide localities. He particularly specialized in all classics as well as minerals of the Black Forest, where he spent much time collecting. His Black Forest and German subcollections went to his good friend Wolfgang Wendel. We at The Arkenstone have the privilege of offering the remainder of this great worldwide collection for the coming months/years through our various platforms.