Calcite on Orpiment (old classic style)

Item Description

This item is part of a special benefit auction for the Rice Museum of Rocks & Minerals (ricenorthwestmuseum.org). Items are either deaccessions from the museum's collection or were donated by generous supporters listed below.

Auction open April 1, 2021 through April 17, 2021.

Billing for this auction will occur on Monday, April 19, for payment using PayPal or credit card. Shipping will be billed at cost, or please contact brandy@mineralauctions.com if you'd like to plan on picking up items at future shows or during a stop through Dallas.

This is classic material from China, from the famous realgar mine which was producing in the 1990s. A historic, ancient location used for production of mercury, this mine also started giving up specimens for collectors once the locals understood what to preserve. Still, such large specimens as this were always rare, even then - and remain so, today. Nothing like this has been found since the 1990s. It is primarily a calcite specimen, and the large, stark ghostly white calcites are dramatic and unique in style. The matrix is composed of orpiment. As you know, orpiment is soft, and easily worn down. The yellow-orange spots you see on the orpiment are small damages, but nevertheless that is really only the contrasting matrix for the calcites, which are the main species here.