Calcite (GEM crystal)

Item Description

A fantastic, good sized GEM QUALITY Calcite crystal from Wuzhou. This piece is a rather sharp, colorless prismatic crystal with a basal termination, free of matrix. The crystal is absolutely colorless and WATER-CLEAR in clarity due to its chemically pure interior. The prism faces are quite lustrous, while the termination has slight matte luster. Beautiful striations can be seen all around, giving the piece a lot of character. Only minor spots of roughness can be seen, but it's largely in superb condition. These now very hard-to-find Calcites from Wuzhou are now considered classics dating back to the early 2000s, and it's the fact that they are some of the finest gem optic grade Calcite crystals from anywhere in the world that really sets them apart. You can compare them to the old English classics, but rarely in this size and quality.
From the collection of Jack Halpern No. 3659. Jack was born May 18, 1920 in Brooklyn, New York, but has been a long-time resident of San Francisco. He assembled one of the great mineral collections in the world encompassing over 3,200 specimens with a specific emphasis on color, quality, and style/aesthetics, which is evident in every piece. He admired specimens of all sizes from thumbnails to large cabinets and the vast majority of them rank from fine to world-class in their quality.
Above all else, Jack is considered to be the greatest gentleman in the modern era of mineral collecting. He is beloved by all those who have met him, and he truly is one of the most iconic figures in the mineral world. We recently acquired Jack's collection, and the VAST majority of these pieces will be offered here in the auctions, as we feel that everyone deserves and equal opportunity at acquiring these important, well-documented and fine quality pieces for their collections. We are honored to have the opportunity to offer Jack's treasures to everyone on a regular basis in the auctions.
We encourage you to read our blog post at https://www.irocks.com/the-jack-halpern-collection or his profile on the Mineralogical Record website https://mineralogicalrecord.com/biographies_labels/halpernjack/ for more information