Axinite-(Fe)

Item Description

Here we have a beautiful, old-time faceted stone of Axinite (specifically Axinite-(Fe)) from the type locality for the species, which was first described in 1781! Axinite (regardless of the specific species) is not often found in clean enough or thick enough crystals to cut fine gems, but when they are cut, they are some of the most beautiful rare stones on the market. Bigger stones are highly pleochroic usually showing distinct purple one direction and a brownish-orange color in another direction. This "Oval" cut stone is an attractive, virtually eye clean stone from this tremendously historic and well-known locality. This locality produced some of finest, gem quality crystals ever found in the world. Axinite gems are usually heavily included, so when you get a stone that is virtually eye clean like this one, it's a real treat. It should be noted that Axinite is a fairly brittle stone with perfect cleavage, so it's not really suitable for jewelry, but a skilled jeweler could potentially set a stone like this into a pendant, if it was well-protected on all sides.