Metatorbernite - 1972 pocket, from discoverer

Item Description

These special crystals of metatorbernite are gorgeous and they date to a single amazing find in the early 1970s, or rather two pockets close together. This is from the pocket with the electric green color, of 1972. The market called them green wulfenite at first! The quality has never been equaled since. According to Alex Schauss, this specimen was considered THE finest (“killer”) dark green translucent thumbnail specimen with metallic surface style, at the time it came out - and kept by the man who found it for decades. It has extremely fine, sharp, bladed crystals and is complete all around. Alex obtained the specimen from Richard Le Sueur. He was the mine superintendent and personally collected the specimen at the mine in October 1972 (his label is included)! The specimen is featured in an issue of The Mineralogical Record from 2015 (page 460) and again in the recent book on thumbnail collecting. Published Photo: Jeff Scovil. Featured in the book by Mineralogical Record; Refined Elegance: Nov-Dec 2022 (page 72). An irreplaceable, colorful, full sized thumbnail of some unique beauty, this has enormous visual appeal AND is important. We considered it one of the real treasures of the collection.