Microcline (large crystal - rare locality)

Item Description

While there are numerous pegmatites in Custer County, South Dakota, good crystallized specimens are seldom seen on the market. This piece is from the Greene Pegmatite near Pringle, and features a rather large, thick, blocky, robust, crystal of off-white colored Microcline along with associated grey Albite and silvery Muscovite. The piece is not damage free, as it's contacted / cleaved on the termination, but it still shows excellent euhedral prism faces, and I think it's a very impressive display piece that would fit beautifully into a pegmatite mineral collection or a suite of Feldspars. Please note that the bottom of the specimen has been sawn, so it actually sits on its own without the aid of a base or clay. You won't see another one of these anytime soon, so don't miss out. The piece is a bit hefty, weighing in at 1,212 grams (2 pounds, 11 ounces). From the collection of Colorado mining legend, Dave Bergman. Dave actually self-collected this specimen while on a field collecting trip in the 1970s. Dave is now retired from mining, but was formerly the foreman and primary person in charge of recovering specimens at the famous Sweet Home Mine near Alma, Colorado during the late 1970s, and the maternal grandfather of Brian Kosnar. See Dave's photo mining at the Sweet Home on page 58 of Peter Bancroft's book "Gem and Crystal Treasures".​