Lopezite (synthetic)

Item Description

Lopezite is a very rare potassium chromate species, which was actually synthesized in laboratories before it was discovered in nature. The first crystals were mined in Chile the 1930s, and the species was named in honor of the Chilean mining engineer and mineral collector, Emiliano López Saa. With that said, natural Lopezite crystals are often very small (only a few mm), but the synthetic examples can be grown to larger sizes. This piece is a wonderful man-made example of this beautiful mineral, with razor-sharp, lustrous faces and that intense red hue for which the species is known. There is one tiny imperfection on one of the corners, but the piece is still fine quality and very attractive.
From the synthetic mineral suite of William ("Bill") (1927-2006) and Anne (1928-2021) Cook of Cleveland, Ohio (#10,210). This husband and wife duo were actively involved in the mineral world for many decades. Bill was a PhD geologist, and Anne was a mathematician, and they both were very serious mineral collectors. Bill served for many years as adjunct curator of mineralogy at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History, and Anne was inducted into the Micromounters' Hall of Fame on October 12, 2019. Both Bill and Anne, at various times, served as president both of the Mineralogical Society of Cleveland and of the Micromineral Society of the Cleveland Museum of Natural History, and Anne was inducted into the mi The rare barium lithium beryllium phosphate Wilancookite was named in their honor in 2015.