Chrysoberyl (var: Alexandrite) (ex Richard Kosnar Collection)

Item Description

A lovely thumbnail sized specimen featuring a sharp, well-formed, deeply colored "sixling" twin of Alexandrite from the Novello Mine (Fort Victoria) in Zimbabwe. The crystals are in good shape, as they have smooth, well-formed faces, but there are a few rough spots here and there, so it's not 100% pristine. Though the crystals are quite dark, there are areas where you can clearly see a fantastic "Alexandrite"-type color change with a rich green hue that changes nearly 100% to a strong reddish-purple color in different lighting. A hard to find thumbnail example of this elusive material from Zimbabwe. From the collection of Richard A. Kosnar (1946-2007) - the namesake for the phosphate species Kosnarite, and one of the most accomplished mineral collectors and dealers of his day.