Rhodochrosite on Quartz

Item Description

The Sunnyside Mine is one of the iconic mines in the San Juan Mountains of Colorado. This locality is actually the combination of several original smaller properties that date back to the 1880s, but were eventually all consolidated into the Sunnyside Mine Group. It should be noted that many specimens from this locality are labeled as coming from the American Tunnel, which is not truly where the specimens were found. The American Tunnel was a large extension project designed to mine underneath the old Sunnyside workings, and also allow drainage out of the mine, but all of the good Rhodochrosites were found in the higher levels above the American Tunnel. Speaking of Rhodos, the Sunnyside for many years was the premier locality for the species in Colorado, especially prior to the Sweet Home Mine reopening in 1977 by Rich Kosnar, and later in the 1990s by Collector's Edge. A good number of fine quality Rhodochrosite specimens were found for a few decades at the Sunnyside, ranging from a beautiful light pink hue to rare saturated red shades. Actually some of the larger Rhodochrosites from this mine which have a light pink color on the surface are in fact RED in the center. This piece is a fine and highly desirable specimen from this prestigious locality featuring a pair of fine, sharp, well-formed, gemmy, rich pinkish-red colored rhombohedra of Rhodochrosite measuring up to 1.5 cm, sitting atop a matrix coated by little drusy Quartz crystals and associated sulfides. The color is about as good as it gets for the locality, and I love the fact that the Rhodos are beautifully isolated on matrix, allowing them to really "pop". I will point out that there is a small bruise on one corner of one of the Rhodos, but you really have to look closely at the right angle to notice it. The piece actually sits quite nicely on its own without the aid of a base or clay. A choice example of these classic Rhodochrosites with excellent color, style and presentation. This piece originally was part of the collection of Fred Croad, by way of Jim Minette.
Valued $15,000.
Ex George Loud Collection No. 14.1.1.4 CO.8; 5450. 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