Microlite Group

Item Description

This an unusual and attractive specimen featuring a RICH coverage of Microlite from a discovery in 1980s. The piece is jam packed with hundreds if not thousands of tiny (it's called Microlite for a reason), sparkling, rich golden-orange colored crystals of Microlite which are coating virtually all sides. If you look along the edge of the specimen, you can see how it grew in a stepped / layered formation. Although the Microlite crystals are small, you can still see well-defined octahedral crystal faces under the microscope. Additionally there are white bladed crystals of Albite on the piece for a nice contrast. A wonderful old time specimen from the famous Ipê mine in Brazil. Despite their size, the finest examples from this mine are some of the finest quality Microlite crystals out there. If nothing else, this is a cool micro specimen for anybody interested in a piece of one of the less common gem mineral oxide species out there. Please note that this specimen is listed as Microlite Group because the species Microlite is no longer valid.