Fluorite Ex. Britt Coll.

Item Description

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Illinois has produced a seemingly-endless range of coloring in fluorites during the relatively brief heyday of the fluorite mines here in the 1980s and 1990s, and the area is particularly prized for bright coloring and sharp phantoms within cubes. However, today, they are only available as collections recycle to the market, and good ones seldom sell otherwise. This particularly beautiful fluorite features wonderful color zoning and phantoms that transition in color from bright blue around the edge, to a rich purple, to yellow in the core. Like many fluorites, this specimen really comes alive when backlit. It sits flat on the bottom where it is mostly contact, where it grew against matrix or another crystal, and so is partially complete even on the bottom. The sides are sharp. The phantoms are intense, and the more you look into it, the more layers you see. This color palette is considered quite rare, and for the size it is a good specimen. Valued $2500, minimum.