Garnet Group (rare Alaska)

Item Description

RARE, sharp, Garnet Group thumbnail crystal from the Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area of Alaska. The lustrous floater dodecahedral crystal with trapezohedral modifications is dark wine-red with areas of lighter red under bright light. BUT, back lighting reveals beautiful areas of gemmy, cherry-red translucence! Complete all-around and nearly pristine, with only trivial rubbing. The crystal is not from nearby Wrangell Island, source of well-known Almandine Garnets in schist. Probably from Prince of Wales Island, source of world-class Epidote specimens. Ex Dr. Art Soregaroli Collection No. S69-14. The numbers match. Art was a very well-known Canadian geologist, senior manager, professor and collector. He also worked at the Geological Survey of Canada. Art was the chief editor of the 2011 magnum opus on Peru minerals: Peru - Paradise of Minerals. Art probably collected this specimen. We acquired his collection several years before he died in 2017.