Rhodochrosite (NEW FIND at old location! - rare habit)

Item Description

An exciting and exotic NEW FIND of Rhodochrosite from the old workings of the renowned N'Chwaning I Mine, source of the fabulous finds of the late 1970s! RARE pinacoidal (flat) terminations cap all of the myriad of scintillating, translucent, bright cherry-red modified scalenohedrons, to about 5 mm. The sculptural large undulating vug in massive hefty manganite ore is highlighted by three impressive mounds of sparkling rhodos. The core of the protruding vug is good shape, with just a bit of bruising to the mounds. The noted periphery wear and some minor damage is certainly acceptable in the context of this bulging vug and all the good crystals shown. The piece was recovered either near the pocket or from the same pocket as one found by Paul Belayer in the Summer of 2018, from going back into the old workings from the 1970s and the early 1980s. This striking and RARE specimen would have been priced at 2000 to 3000 Euros ($2250-3400 US) if it were in the single showcase the miners presented at this year's Munich Show (with no more than 20 specimens). Mass is 1322 grams or 2.9 pounds. The only example of this find we were able to obtain from another source, it seems a lot of red color and size, for the price (potentially!).