Siderite (formerly ''Chalybite'') on Quartz (classic material)

Item Description

Here we have a beautiful and highly displayable specimen of Siderite from the famed Virtuous Lady Mine in Devon, England, which is quite possibly one of the most famous Siderite localities in the world. This historic mine is renowned for producing the distinctive "lady slipper" pseudomorphs of Siderite after Baryte, which to the best of my knowledge, have not been found anywhere else in the world. Additionally, this mine also yielded some incredibly iconic pseudomorphs of Siderite after Fluorite (see https://www.mindat.org/photo-136031.html) as well. This attractive specimen hosts a fine quality group of highly compressed, dark greenish-brown colored rhombic crystals of Siderite measuring 3.1 cm across, aesthetically perched atop white Quartz matrix. No damage, and it's just about as dramatic and eye-catching as it gets with the Siderites perfectly centered on the top central portion of the matrix. It's quite possibly the most visually perfect specimen we've had to offer from the locality, and pieces of this quality, arrangement, size and quality are virtually impossible to obtain, as they were mined in the early to mid 1800s. The piece comes with an old label from Dr. Friedrich Krantz of Bonn, Germany.
I value this one highly (in the $7,000 range) for not only its composition, but its quality and the fact that it's from one of the most well-known and important specimen producing mines in Devon/Cornwall.
From the collection of Jack Halpern No. 2739. Jack was born May 18, 1920 in Brooklyn, New York, but has been a long-time resident of San Francisco. He assembled one of the great mineral collections in the world encompassing over 3,200 specimens with a specific emphasis on color, quality, and style/aesthetics, which is evident in every piece. He admired specimens of all sizes from thumbnails to large cabinets and the vast majority of them rank from fine to world-class in their quality.
Above all else, Jack is considered to be the greatest gentleman in the modern era of mineral collecting. He is beloved by all those who have met him, and he truly is one of the most iconic figures in the mineral world. We recently acquired Jack's 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 pieces for their collections. We are honored to have the opportunity to offer Jack's treasures to everyone on a regular basis in the auctions.
We encourage you to read our blog post at https://www.irocks.com/the-jack-halpern-collection or his profile on the Mineralogical Record website https://mineralogicalrecord.com/biographies_labels/halpernjack/ for more information