Fused Chromium-III Oxide (synthetic)

Item Description

Here we have an attractive specimen of synthetic fused Chromium-III Oxide. According to the label, this piece was grown in Niagara Falls, New York and features a combination of slick/vitreous slightly skeletal cubic crystals, along with almost stalactitic forms and rounded concoidal surfaces, free of matrix. It's the only piece of the material that I can remember having to offer, and is a cool representation of this esoteric synthetic material.
From the synthetic mineral suite of William ("Bill") (1927-2006) and Anne (1928-2021) Cook of Cleveland, Ohio (#7724). This husband and wife duo were actively involved in the mineral world for many decades. Bill was a PhD geologist, and Anne was a mathematician, and they both were very serious mineral collectors. Bill served for many years as adjunct curator of mineralogy at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History, and Anne was inducted into the Micromounters' Hall of Fame on October 12, 2019. Both Bill and Anne, at various times, served as president both of the Mineralogical Society of Cleveland and of the Micromineral Society of the Cleveland Museum of Natural History. The rare barium lithium beryllium phosphate Wilancookite was named in their honor in 2015.