Kermesite (classic material) (ex Franceco Bedogne Collection)

Item Description

This historic antimony mine in Slovakia has produced some of the most well known and classic Kermesite specimens in history. The species gets its name from the word "kermes ", deriving from the Persian qurmizq, for "crimson", as these crystals exhibit an intense red/crimson color under strong lighting. Even though the crystals may look metallic in reflected light, this is one of the few sulfides that actually shows color when backlit! This specimen hosts a few beautiful crystallized "sprays of good quality, thin, prismatic, sharp, lustrous, metallic/gemmy "needles on matrix. It is one of the better specimens of this well known material that I have offered in the auctions recently. Old material too, as the label refers to Slovakia as being part of the CSSR which ceased to exist after 1990. From the worldwide collection of famed Italian mineral collector, field collector and author, Francesco Bedogne of Sondrio, Italy (Collection #69). Bedogne wrote dozens of articles and several books about the mineralogy of Italian Alpine localities such as Val Bregaglia, Val Masino, Val Codera, Val Spluga, Valtellina and the famous Val Malenco. He was also the founder of the Valtellinese Mineralogical Institute.