Rhodochrosite

Item Description

The Sunnyside Mine, located near Silverton in the San Juan Mountains of Colorado has produced some of the most recognized Rhodochrosite specimens from any mine in the entire state. Keep in mind that for decades, these piece were the most well-known Rhodochrosites from any Colorado mine, because they were much more abundant on the market prior to the re-opening of the Sweet Home Mine in the 1970s and 1990s respectively. If it were not for the Sweet Home Mine, the Sunnyside specimens would be the best and most recognized Rhodochrosites from Colorado. This piece hosts a rich coverage of excellent attractive, sharp, lustrous, rhombs of pink colored Rhodochrosite associated with minor grey Galena and Quartz matrix forming an attractive cabinet display specimen. The largest Rhodochrosite crystal measures about 1.1 cm. Very little damage, good condition overall. A great specimen for any collector of Rhodochrosites or specimens from Colorado from this well known mine in the San Juan Mountains. For reference, this specimen was collected by Alan Norris circa 1940s-1960s and comes from this personal collection.
Valued $6,000-$7,500.
Ex George Loud Collection No. 14.1.14 CO.12; 8230. George (born August 16, 1942) is a well-known mineral collector from Washington, DC and South Carolina respectively, and was a patent lawyer by trade for over 50 years. He assembled one of the great mineral collections in the U.S., comprising worldwide specimens, and in later years he sold the worldwide specimens to focus on minerals of the United States, specifically locality suites with an emphasis on amazing representation of species while still maintaining fine quality. The specimens remarkably range from micros to all the way up to large cabinets in size. We recently acquired most of his impressive 9000+ piece 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 specimens for their collections.
See: https://mineralogicalrecord.com/biographies_labels/george-loud for more information