Fluorite (bi-colored crystals) on Dolomite

Item Description

An older specimen from a find in the 1990s at the prestigious Shangbao Mine in China. This important locality is famous for its beautiful Fluorites, occurring in range of colors, and often found in showy display specimens with wonderful associations. They are some of the most distinctive, eye-catching and highest quality examples from anywhere in China. These wonderful Fluorites are a staple of any Fluorite collection or Chinese mineral collection. This small cabinet display specimen hosts beautiful, sharp, lustrous, GEMMY cubic crystals of Fluorite sitting on beige colored, pearly Dolomite matrix. The Fluorites are actually bi-colored, with gorgeous purple hues in the center of the crystals and the exterior edges are colorless. The largest Fluorite measures 1.7 cm. If you look closely, you can see the Fluorites have gentle "phantoms" inside. With the naked eye, the Fluorites look damage free. Overall, it's very difficult to obtain pieces of this quality with such excellent bi-colored crystals. A fine example from this famous mine. Priced in our inventory at $1,500 retail. Ex Dr. Stephen Smale Collection. Along with amassing one of the finest private mineral collections in the world, Steve is a renowned mathematician. His accomplishments include being awarded the Fields Medal in 1966 along with being the awarded the Wolf Prize in mathematics in 2007. You can read Steve's bio on the Mineralogical Record website ( https://mineralogicalrecord.com/biographies_labels/smalestephen/ ) or on Wikipedia.