Important Manganite (dated 1876)

Item Description

An impressive jackstraw cluster of splendent, striated, jet-black manganite prisms. This historic, old-timer is NOT just a "black rock" by any means. It displays very dramatically and impressively from several angles, as you can see. The striking large crystal is 3.3 cm. These old pieces came out in about 1865-1890 (per the excellent 2010 Ilfeld article in The Mineralogical Record). This piece is nearly solid, crystallized manganite ALL AROUND and has just a bit of barite and matrix! The specimen comes with an old label dated 1876 and a colored sketch of a manganite twin, that is featured in the MR article (Figure 16). Superb crystals, good size, and high luster make this an excellent and affordable small cabinet, valued about $2000. Classic mid to late 1880s material.