Rutile var. Ilmenorutile (uncommon Nb-rich)

Item Description

Ilmenorutile is the uncommon niobian-bearing varietal of rutile. A 1.7 cm, sharp, lustrous, doubly terminated, black crystal is adorably perched atop matrix with smaller crystals. Complete all-around, a bruised back edge is out-of-sight in the primary display view. Collected in the Sierra Mountains in about 1965 by a well-known field collector named Bob Raduenz, who to this day refuses to divulge the exact locality but has also failed to find more there. These are clearly distinct from the Champion Mine rutiles from Mono County in appearance, and in chemical composition as per the Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy report shown at http://www.irocks.com/db_pics/new2010/rutilescan1.pdf and http://www.irocks.com/db_pics/new2010/rutilescan2.pdf (with Niobium running nearly 25% by weight). Valued by the former dealer at $450.