rare & complete Liddicoatite Tourmaline set of slices (Pezzotta Coll.)

Item Description

From the collection of well-known Madagascar exploration mineralogist Dr. Federico Pezzotta, this piece is an exceptional example of a single liddicoatite crystal showing the amazing chemical diversity and weirdness these are historically noted for because he carefully sliced it to show the complex fancy patterns on the inside. Fascinating! This specimen exhibits a green outside color in total contrast to what lies within. Liddicoatites are often like that, and this reason is why the slices tend to sell for more than the crystals themselves, in a much larger market than mineral collectors out there. Sets such as this, so carefully done and without damage or breaks, are extremely rare. The set preserves the entire crystal from bottom to top, fully terminated. Liddicoatite was approved as a new species by the International Mineralogical Association in 1976. The name was recently changed to fluor-liddicoatite. It is one of the species in the tourmaline group and was named for Richard T. Liddicoat (1918-2002), a gemologist and former president of the Gemological Institute of America. Liddicoatite is one of the few sliced and polished species found in serious mineral collections. Fluor-liddicoatite occurs in pegmatites, primarily from Madagascar. It exhibits vitreous luster and is found in various hues, from light brown to pink, red, blue, and colorless, sometimes all in one crystal with a bewilderingly quick (natural chemical-induced) change from slice to slice, as shown so dramatically here. It forms a series with the most common gem tourmaline species, elbaite. This particular crystal has been carefully sliced into 30 (THIRTY!) pieces with each one exhibiting color and internal pattern changes from the previous slice, making for a fascinating set overall. Do you imagine how painstaking that must be, to do those slices and not lose one or mess up? They are all similarly sized and highly polished to the best quality so it is not only a rare complete set but a rarely FINE set as well. Much more rare! It is very difficult to get such well-sliced, whole tourmaline crystals like this. The slices are gemmy and the whole crystal exhibits good luster. This is a hefty single crystal, just over a half kilo (500 grams) in mass. Adding up the value of the slices alone, if sold individually, makes this a fairly good deal on that basis alone! There are THIRTY (30) slices, and in the jewelry market and cut markets, they sell for anywhere from $250-1000 each depending on coloration normally. So you can do the math...30 perfectly polished slices at some price certainly add up quickly if you sold them one by one (well, technically that is 28 slices plus a bottom and top termination...but those are polished on one side, preserving natural tips on the other). It was found in 2001 and long remained in the personal collection of the Madagascan government's geological exploration consultant and collector, Dr. Federico Pezzotta, who is also curator of the Museum of Natural History of Milan as well. Valued at a minimum, just on the value that slices sell for, at over $10,000.