Gyrolite (fine quality)

Item Description

A great old-time small cabinet specimen of what are arguably the best quality Gyrolite specimens in the world. There are not too many good Gyrolite specimens (especially display quality) outside of India, and there are certainly fewer of them on the market than in years past. This piece actually dates back to the mid 1990s. It hosts many spherical groups of rich greenish-brown Gyrolite sitting inside of an exposed vug lined with what appears to be Okenite, on basalt matrix. The largest Gyrolite "ball" measures about 7 mm across, but it was difficult to accurately measure from within the vug. Indian trap rock minerals don't get enough appreciation these days from collectors, and it's a shame because the majority of these minerals are truly the finest crystallized examples of their respective species in the world. Don't miss out on this one, it's a great piece of this now classic material.
This piece comes from the collection of Colorado mining legend, Dave Bergman. Dave is now retired from mining, but spent many years underground, including as the foreman and primary person in charge of recovering specimens at the famous Sweet Home Mine near Alma, Colorado during the late 1970s. He is also the maternal grandfather of Brian Kosnar. See Dave's photo mining at the Sweet Home on page 58 of Peter Bancroft's book "Gem and Crystal Treasures". The piece was given to Dave as a gift by his son-in-law, Rich Kosnar who mined the piece in the early 2000s.