Olmiite (rare)

Item Description

Here we have a showy miniature sized display specimen of Olmiite, a very rare calcium-manganese silicate mineral, named in honor of Italian mineralogist Filippo Olmi. This mineral is fairly new to collectors as it was only approved by the IMA in 2006. I will point out that it's fairly rare in the modern era of mineral collecting to find rare minerals which such large crystals (or crystal aggregates) with such a pleasing color. Keep in mind that most rare minerals are either very small or devoid or color, so when you have species like this with good sized crystals of a beautiful hue, it's special. Olmiite falls into a specific category of minerals that are almost exclusively tied to a single world locality or area, in this case the Kalahari Manganese Field of South Africa. I would make a comparison from Olmiite to Cavansite/Pentagonite, both of which have beautiful distinctive colors and forms in eye-visible crystals which are really only found in one place in fine specimens. The Olmiite specimens from the N'Chwaning Mines are iconic and top-notch, and have found their way into collections around the world. Interestingly, virtually all of these Olmiite specimens were labeled as being Poldervaartite several years ago, but the large percentage of them were proven to be Olmiite, making Poldervaartite an exceptionally rare species. This piece features a fine quality, sharp, lustrous, translucent, beautiful light orange-pink colored groups of Olmiite measuring 1.7 cm across sitting on Calcite on matrix. A very attractive, damage-free specimen of this famous and now somewhat hard to find. Valued $2,500.
From the collection of Jack Halpern No. 3920. Jack was born May 18, 1920 in Brooklyn, New York, but has been a long-time resident of San Francisco. He assembled one of the great mineral collections in the world encompassing over 3,200 specimens with a specific emphasis on color, quality, and style/aesthetics, which is evident in every piece. He admired specimens of all sizes from thumbnails to large cabinets and the vast majority of them rank from fine to world-class in their quality.
Above all else, Jack is considered to be the greatest gentleman in the modern era of mineral collecting. He is beloved by all those who have met him, and he truly is one of the most iconic figures in the mineral world. We recently acquired Jack's collection, and the VAST majority of these pieces will be offered here in the auctions, as we feel that everyone deserves and equal opportunity at acquiring these important, well-documented and fine quality pieces for their collections. We are honored to have the opportunity to offer Jack's treasures to everyone on a regular basis in the auctions.
We encourage you to read our blog post at https://www.irocks.com/the-jack-halpern-collection or his profile on the Mineralogical Record website https://mineralogicalrecord.com/biographies_labels/halpernjack/ for more information