Garnet on Microcline (RARE locality specimen) (ex Kay Robertson Collection)

Item Description

A very attractive and incredibly hard to find specimen of Garnet on Microcline from the Ashley Mine (Katerina Mine) on Hiriart Mountain in Pala. The listing for the locality on mindat.org states that no species of Garnet has been reported from this locality, but Kay's label states that the piece was acquired from Jim Clarin (sp?) who personally collected the specimen in the spring of 1986. A well-formed, sharp, lustrous, trapezohedral crystal of deep red Garnet (possibly Spessartine or Almandine?) measures 2.0 cm across and is beautifully set atop a matrix of very pale green colored (almost Amazonite) Microcline crystal matrix. The Garnet crystal is complete on all sides, and has some really interestesting / unique etching patterns creating some attractive skeletal / "hoppered" faces. The aesthetics combined with the rarity of the locality make this a higly desirable and attractive specimen for any fan of worldwide Garnets, pegmatite minerals or specimens from San Diego County. Ex Kay Robertson Collection (#12020). Kay is a prominent California collector, who specialized in European classics (see the article in the March-April, 2007 Mineralogical Record and the 50+ page article in the German Magazine "Mineralien Welt" November-December 2017).