Bastnäsite (rare)

Item Description

Bastnäsite is an incredibly rare gem, and these stones from Pakistan are without question the finest examples of facet-grade Bastnäsite in the world. We first started seeing the crystals on the market back in the early 2000s, and coming out of Zagi Mountain, near Peshawar. Stones were then cut from fine gem quality crystals, which are also the best of their kind ever found. The significance of the discovery was that the crystals were thick enough for faceting, which was almost impossible to find previous, as the species typically forms in relatively thin blades and was never suitable enough for cutting stones. These stones are extremely rare and highly prized by collectors. They often have some sort of inclusions, and completely eye clean gems are very hard to find. This particular stone is a beautiful, rich orange color gem with a "Pear" cut. The stone is only very slightly included which is well above average for this material. This stone would fill a spot in any rare gem collection.