Fluorite on Quartz with Cassiterite and Scheelite (rare combo) (ex Dr. Stephen Smale Collection)

Item Description

Some of the finest crystallized specimens of Stannite in the world have come from this mine. Sadly, very little of that material is out on the market now and it's a shame because they were rather limited to begin with. This is certainly one of the more interesting association specimens that we've had to offer from this mine. This large cabinet display specimen hosts a central group of sharp, lustrous, gemmy, purple and green colored cubic Fluorite crystals, with the largest individual crystal measuring up to 1.9 cm on edge sitting atop a plate of robust, well-formed, prismatic hexagonal Quartz crystals. The added bonus to this already attractive specimen is that it features many lustrous, attractive, deep brown-black colored cyclic twinned crystals of Cassiterite measuring up to 2.1 cm across and the cherry on top is a couple of dark brown colored, sharp, lustrous, pseudo-octahedral crystals of Scheelite measuring up to 2.0 cm across. Now the Scheelites almost blend in completely with the Cassiterites, but if you have a SW UV light, you can find them very easily because they fluoresce a beautiful white-blue color. Minor beige groups of Muscovite and a few metallic silvery Arsenopyrite crystals are scattered about for a nice touch. Very little damage, though there is a bit of roughness in spots around the periphery, but it's easily forgiven for the size, quality and wonderful / hard to find associations on this impressive specimen from this premier locality. Priced at $6,000 in the inventory. 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.