Fluorite (rare botryoidal habit)

Item Description

Fluorite is one of the most diverse species in the mineral kingdom, occurring in a wide range of colors, habits and styles. These distinctive specimens from the Mahodari Quarry in the Nashik District of India are well-known for their distinctive and rare botryoidal habit, which is rarely seen anywhere else in the world. This attractive miniature features a solitary pinkish colored sphere measuring 3.6 cm across, sitting on minor matrix. The piece is contacted on the back, and you can see the interior is a light golden hue, so the pinkish hue is only on the exterior, said to be from Hematite inclusions. One does not typically expect to see Fluorite in trap rock quarries, among all the zeolites and other associated minerals, but these particular pieces are well-known and recognized for their uniqueness.
From the collection of Jack Halpern No. 3842. Jack was born May 18, 1920 in Brooklyn, New York, but has been a long-time resident of San Francisco. He assembled one of the great mineral collections in the world encompassing over 3,200 specimens with a specific emphasis on color, quality, and style/aesthetics, which is evident in every piece. He admired specimens of all sizes from thumbnails to large cabinets and the vast majority of them rank from fine to world-class in their quality.
Above all else, Jack is considered to be the greatest gentleman in the modern era of mineral collecting. He is beloved by all those who have met him, and he truly is one of the most iconic figures in the mineral world. We recently acquired Jack's collection, and the VAST majority of these pieces will be offered here in the auctions, as we feel that everyone deserves and equal opportunity at acquiring these important, well-documented and fine quality pieces for their collections. We are honored to have the opportunity to offer Jack's treasures to everyone on a regular basis in the auctions.
We encourage you to read our blog post at https://www.irocks.com/the-jack-halpern-collection or his profile on the Mineralogical Record website https://mineralogicalrecord.com/biographies_labels/halpernjack/ for more information