Diopside (rare doubly-terminated "Faden" specimen)

Item Description

Typically, you don't see really attractive thumbnail specimen from Hashupa of any species, and I would say that this is quite possibly the best thumbnail sized example of Diopside we've ever had to offer from this locality. These specimens are rare enough, but to find a piece of this quality in this specific size range is significant. This piece is a sharp, lustrous, gemmy, rich green colored (some reports say that this material might be chromium-bearing but I cannot confirm this), doubly-terminated crystal group, free of matrix. When backlit, if you look closely, you can see a thin "Faden" line running at an angle across the specimen, which makes this not only a rarely seen thumbnail, but a remarkably rare "Faden" Diopside. The term "Faden" comes from the German word for string, as "Faden" specimens will feature small thread-like internal lines, which typically follow the general direction of the crystals. These "Fadens" are said to have either formed from small stress fractures inside the crystals that form during tectonic activity, leaving small "scars" internally, or they are formed from small inclusions of a "Byssolite"-like mineral.