Fluorite

Item Description

A wonderful matrix specimen of the famous southern Illinois Fluorites. This piece hails from the classic Minerva Mine #1 and features an attractive coverage of sharp, GEM / gemmy, beautiful blue color cubes measuring up to 2.3 cm on edge sitting on matrix. The Fluorites have a selective deposition of what I assume to be iron oxide, though it could be a clay mineral of some kind. As is the case with most Illinois Fluorites, the color looks best in sunlight, but these crystals are a still a very pleasing blue hue in indoor lighting. You can actually see purple "cores" at the center of most of the cubes. Now there is some damage here, so the piece is not pristine, but it's still an eye-catching cabinet display specimen and the clarity of the Fluorites is nearly WATER CLEAR in many of the crystals.