Smithsonite - unusual form

Item Description

Thousands of lustrous, sharp micro-crystals of mint-green Smithsonite combine to make this a showy, small-cabinet specimen from Morocco. A rare but known classic from Touissit, the Smithsonites form very delicate layers along the matrix, sometimes raising up almost lattice-like. There are also numerous small crystals that fluoresce a bright yellow, which would not be the norm for Smithsonite, so perhaps they are Cerussites? The elegant, bladed clusters of Smithsonite resemble coral fans with their shape, beauty, and perceived fragility. Smithsonites can take several forms when clustered, but there is something almost ethereal about the nature and aesthetics of this unusual and very fine specimen. Probably from the 1960s finds here.