Dioptase with Wulfenite (new find!)

Item Description

This piece was mined in January 2019. The now well-known Mpita Mine has given collectors some really attractive display specimens of Dioptase, some of which are some of the sharpest, most lustrous and gemmiest to come from any locality in decades. This mine is located on the railroad between Lutete and Mindouli in Republic of the Congo (Brazzaville), but material is often only labeled as coming from "Kimbedi". We were fortunate to pick up a parcel of these attractive new specimens, which are different from what we've seen in the past. You'll notice that the crystals are not large individual singles, but rather smaller clusters in semi-parallel growth measuring up to about 4 mm. The color is still that intense emerald green, and the luster, sharpness and classic trigonal shape are what you expect for the species and the locality. With good backlighting, many of the little Dioptase crystals are VERY gemmy! What really sets the piece part is the fact that it is associated with wonderfully contrasting orange crystals of Wulfenite - some of which have formed into radial groups creating attractive "spiked balls", as they are pyramidal in habit (virtually no prism face can be seen) which is rare for the locality. Additionally there are a few spots on the piece where you can see patches of colorless gemmy overgrowths of what I believe to be Calcite as they have a rhombic habit under magnification. To better illustrate everything, we took some micro photos with a Canon MP-E 65 mm macro lens. I love the color contrast of the Dioptase with the Wulfenite, which is reminiscent of Tiger, Arizona. There are some contacts, so the piece is not 100% pristine, but I had a lot of fun looking at it under the microscope. Dioptase is highly valued around the world because of the localities like Tsumeb, and although this piece isn't quite the same quality, it's still a fantastic cabinet display specimen with a rare Wulfenite association that you don't see often from any locality.