Quartz var: Rose (rare classic material)

Item Description

Here we have a rare and significant specimen of Rose Quartz labeled as coming from the Plumbago Mine (Plumbago Mountain?) in Newry, Maine. Although Rose Quartz is known from many localities around the world, I'll bet a lot of people are not aware that the first Rose Quartz crystals were discovered in Maine. The entry on mindat.org reports that, "The first Rose Quartz crystals known in the world were found at Mount Mica Quarry about 1913-1915". While the Mount Mica Quarry is located about 40 miles southeast of Plumbago, this piece is still from an area where some of the first examples of Rose Quartz were ever discovered. Although Brazil has been synonymous with Rose Quartz for decades, it wasn't actually discovered there until 1958, so Rose Quartz was known from Maine for over 40 years before it was ever found in Brazil. This piece is a wonderful locality specimen featuring a well-formed, translucent, beautiful light pink colored Rose Quartz crystals sitting on a matrix of beige colored Albite var: Cleavelandite with accenting Muscovite. Rose Quartz specimens from Maine are difficult to find on the market, and if you're a Quartz collector, a New England mineral collector, or just a fan of pegmatite minerals, don't miss out on this attractive and seldom-seen example from the oldest gem mining area in the US.
From the worldwide mineral collection of Albert Lewis Kidwell (January 1, 1919 - August 16, 2008). Al was a well-known mineral collector and research geologist with Carter Oil Company and later Exxon Oil Company in Houston, Texas. The phosphate species Kidwellite was named in his honor in 1974.