Imperial Topaz (rare locality)

Item Description

When it comes to Imperial Topaz crystals, everybody is familiar with the classic examples from Ouro Preto, Brazil. Going back to around 2009, there was a completely new, unexpected and exciting discovery of equally beautiful and fine quality Imperial Topaz specimens in Zambia. At this year's Tucson Show we acquired a small parcel from a good friend who owns a claim in Zambia and is actively mining this material. This crystal came out of the ground just a few months ago. They are notably similar to their Brazilian counterparts in both color and habit, but I can say that some of these Zambian crystals are actually gemmier than many I've seen from Brazil. The reason you don't see any many gem quality Brazilian crystals is because a large percentage of them are faceted into gemstones, but our friend in Zambian didn't want to butcher good crystals, so we were fortunate to get some pieces like this with excellent gemminess. This piece is a fine, sharp, lustrous, soft orange color crystal with good overall gemminess. The piece has a classic "chisel"-shaped termination just like the Brazilian crystals. There piece is essentially damage free, save the base where it detached from the pocket, and it's a lovely example of these attractive and exciting pieces from this limited discovery.