Andradite var: Melanite

Item Description

An attractive thumbnail sized dodecahedral crystal of Melanite, a variety of Andradite from the Sokolovskoe Mine in Kazakhstan. Typically Melanite is black, but with very strong backlighting, I can get a bit of a reddish-brown hue to come through the edges of this crystal. The piece is largely in good shape, complete all around, but there are few nicks/imperfections that keep it from being totally pristine.
From the collection of Vasco Trancoso, a medical doctor and prominent mineral collector from near Lisbon, Portugal (https://www.mindat.org/user-11954.html). He assembled his mineral collection over the course of 60 years, and built a fine worldwide display collection that we recently purchased.