Fedorite with Charoite (very rare)

Item Description

A very rare association specimen from the Murunskii Massif in Russia featuring silvery-beige colored micaceous looking crystals of the rare phyllosilicate, Fedorite, sitting in a matrix of beautiful purple Charoite, a rare inosilicate. Fedorite was named in 1965 after Russian mineralogist Evgraf Fedorov, and Charoite was named after the Chara River in Russian, where the first specimens were found. To the best of my knowledge the Murunskii Massif is the ONLY place in the world where these two minerals are found together. If you collect rarities, or minerals from the type locality (the Murunskii Massif is the type locality for Charoite), this is something that is virtually impossible to find on the market, so don't miss out. From the collection of William ("Bill") (1927-2006) and Anne (1928-2021) Cook of Cleveland, Ohio (#8606) 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.