Beta-type black ("Morion") Smoky Quartz (rare - old - Richard Hauck Coll.)

Item Description

An impressive large and sculptural specimen of a glassy, highly lustrous, black quartz crystals dominated by the striking large 9.8 cm crystal. The large crystal is very nearly opaque, with the smaller crystals being translucent. The crystals are di-pyramidal with no prism faces and are called 'morion' quartz by some people. Morion is the German, Danish, Spanish and Polish synonym for smoky quartz. They are also called beta quartz by others on the market. This is old material from a few famous finds in the 1960s to early 1970s in Bahia, Brazil. These are high temperature quartz crystals, technically quartz pseudomorphs after beta quartz (see mindat for a further explanation under "Quartz-beta" at http://www.mindat.org/min-7395.html). Nearly pristine with only trivial edge wear to the large crystal. Ex Dick Hauck Quartz Collection. Today these old-timers are considered RARE, highly desirable and are seldom on the market.