Calcite floater sphere, included by Boulangerite ex Mushlitz

Item Description

Unique in the world of minerals: A classic from the 1980s-1990s finds here, this is actually one of the bigger and more complete examples I have seen of this strange material which consists of a sphere of calcite plates that curl in upon themselves like an armadillo, making for a bizarre kind of specimen - unique to this location, so far as I know. The dark black color is due to inclusions of Boulangerite and Jamesonite within, minutely distributed to give an even coloration. This piece is complete all around, remarkably preserved and pristine, and has great color and luster! It is among the better examples we have seen for sale in recent years, although they do sometimes turn up on the market. Most of these calcites are rather dull in comparison to this specimen, which has a good luster. Typically, they were 2-4 cm, and this is larger than average. Other than from old collections, I do not know that I'd expect to see these again for sale anytime soon, and especially in this size and quality. Sometimes you do actually see comparable quality but in a smaller size, on the shelves with dealers at the Munich show, and those usually run $1000-ish or more, anyways - so this should fetch something higher as a general guideline. From the Richard Mushlitz collection.