Bastnäsite-(Ce)

Item Description

Bastnäsite is a fairly rare mineral (it's actually a group featuring several specific REE species) in nature, and most of the crystals you'll find are typically very thin blades. The famous Trimouns Quarry in France was probably the best known locality for Bastnäsite-(Ce) in the world until the excellent crystals from Zagi Mountain came along. These specimens first started popping up in the late 1990s, and the best examples have simply redefined the species for size and quality of crystals. They are notably THICKER than their French counterparts, and sometimes are notably gemmy to boot. This specimen features a 1.1 cm, well-formed, rich golden-brown hexagonal crystal of Bastnäsite-(Ce) with sharp faces and good luster aesthetically flaring off matrix. Little thin black prisms of what I believe to be Aegirine can be seen on the piece as well. It seems as though this locality has produced less and less of these outstanding specimens over the last few years, and if you don't have one in your collection, just keep in mind that these crystals are superb for what they are, and worth picking up. If I had this one priced for sale on a shelf at show, I would have it in the $1,500-$2,000 range retail. From the collection of Richard ("Rich") A. Kosnar (1946-2007), the well-known mineral dealer and collector from Colorado, who built a suite of minerals from Pakistan and Afghanistan going back to the 1980s. Rich was the namesake for the rare zirconium phosphate species, Kosnarite.