Rubellite Tourmaline on Lepidolite (ex Gary Weaver Collection)

Item Description

The Brown Derby Mine is best known for its Tourmaline specimens. Even though it is one of Colorado's major Li-Be mines, it's also rare-earth element locality as well. This piece features some attractive, striated, reddish-pink prims of Rubellite Tourmaline measuring up to 5.0 cm long sitting on a matirx of white feldspar and purpolish "Lepidolite". I use quotes becuase Lepidolite is no longer a valid mineral species, and according to the scattered information we found, Lepidolite is defined as a mineral in the so-called Polylithionite-Trilithionite series. The Tourmalines are contacted on the terminations, but it's hard to find pristine examples from this locality. You don't see many of these on the market anymore, and if you collect Colorado minerals or worldwide Tourmalines, it's a great piece for any collector who still needs one of these to check that box in their collection. Valued at $800. From the collection of Gary Weaver of Prescott, Arizona (1944-2019). Gary was an electrical engineer who worked for many years for Hughes Aircraft in California. You can read Gary's obituary here https://www.dcourier.com/news/2019/apr/27/obituary-gary-richard-weaver/