Monazite-(Ce)

Item Description

A very nice, well-formed and beautiful twinned Monazite-(Ce) crystal that is incredibly lustrous and complete all around, front and back. This crystal is a gorgeous coppery-bronze color with almost a "metal flake" look to it. It is mostly translucent with a few gemmy areas along the edges. The crystal looks to be one crystal on one broad surface, yet the opposing face seems to be two distinct crystals...interesting, yet perplexing. Monazite-(Ce) is a REE phosphate and this piece exhibits textbook twinning on {100} and this piece may be doubly twinned, and certainly each end of the piece is twinned! We've never seen another Monazite-(Ce) crystal like this. It most likely originates from the 1980s find of great floater crystals from the Joaqim Relicio Mine at Buenopolis in Minas Gerais.