Ettringite

Item Description

An attractive thumbnail sized specimen of Ettringite from the N'Chwaning Mines in South Africa featuring a sharp, lustrous, fine yellow color hexagonal prismatic crystal with attached matrix. While the matrix created some interrupted growth, I don't see any real damage on the front/display side of the Ettringite. A good example of what are certainly the finest examples of the species ever found. From the collection of William ("Bill") (1927-2006) and Anne (1928-2021) Cook of Cleveland, Ohio (#7042) with a label from the Fersman Mineralogical Museum in Russia. This husband and wife duo were actively involved in the mineral world for many decades. Bill was a PhD geologist, and Anne was a mathematician, and they both were very serious mineral collectors. Bill served for many years as adjunct curator of mineralogy at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History, and Anne was inducted into the Micromounters' Hall of Fame on October 12, 2019. Both Bill and Anne, at various times, served as president both of the Mineralogical Society of Cleveland and of the Micromineral Society of the Cleveland Museum of Natural History. The rare barium lithium beryllium phosphate Wilancookite was named in their honor in 2015.