Lorándite (rare and fine quality) (ex Bill and Anne Cook Collection)

Item Description

A good quality small miniature sized specimen of the rare thallium arsenic sulfosalt Lorándite from the type locality. This species dates back to 1894 and was named after Hungarian mathematician Loránd Eötvös. This piece hosts a sharp, well-formed, slightly translucent 8 mm crystal of dark carmine red Lorándite sitting among metallic, golden-yellow Orpiment on matrix. Most of the Lorándite crystals you'll find online are only a few mm across, so the crystal on this specimen is certainly larger than most, and the piece is especially enticing since it's from the type locality. You will not find another like this every day on the market, so if you collect rarities, sulfides/sulfosalts, minerals from the type locality, or just excellent crystallized examples of hard to find minerals, don't pass this one up. From the collection of William ("Bill") (1927-2006) and Anne (1928-2021) Cook of Cleveland, Ohio. 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.