Rutile (classic material)

Item Description

The Rutile crystals from the old Champion Mine don't get enough credit for their quality and excellent crystallization. While the famed crystals from Graves Mt in Georgia are well-known, the Champion Mine pieces are somewhat forgotten, and it's a shame because the best piece hold their own against the Georgia specimens. With that said, the quantity of Rutiles from the Champion Mine was also significantly less, making them a bit more desirable in my opinion. This piece is a highly lustrous, deep metallic red color Rutile crystal with minor attached Pyrophyllite, but no real matrix to speak of. The piece is in good shape, but not damage-free as there are some contacted areas in a few spots. Overall, a worthwhile example of these beautiful old classics dating back to the 1960s. From the collection of legendary Colorado miner, Dave Bergman. Dave is now retired, but mined all over Colorado and was most famously the former the foreman and primary person in charge of recovering specimens at the famous Sweet Home Mine near Alma, Colorado during the late 1970s. He is also the maternal grandfather of Brian Kosnar. See Dave's photo mining at the Sweet Home on page 58 of Peter Bancroft's book "Gem and Crystal Treasures".