Spessartine Garnet (''floater'' crystal)

Item Description

A very attractive, classic, "floater" Spessartine crystal from this now well-known Brazilian locality showing sharp, lustrous, heavily striated, dodecahedral faces. The color is a deep wine red when viewed with reflected light, but through transmitted light, it exhibits a glowing fiery orange-red color with lighter orange zones around the edges where the crystal is thinner. These specimens seemed to have "dried up" on the market recently, and its a shame because they are simply some of the most unique and distinctive Garnet crystals extant. The combination of unique form, lustrous faces, and intense color make these specimens a must-have for any Garnet collector. Specimen weight is 31.95 grams.
From the collection of Vasco Trancoso, a medical doctor and prominent mineral collector from near Lisbon, Portugal (https://www.mindat.org/user-11954.html). He assembled his mineral collection over the course of 60 years, and built a fine worldwide display collection that we recently purchased. This piece is pictured on mindat.org at https://www.mindat.org/photo-186775.html