Sphalerite (superb color and quality)

Item Description

Creede is one of the most well-known specimen-producing mining districts in Colorado. It's famous for its silver minerals, along with beautiful Amethysts, and some of the FINEST Sphalerites from any locality, not just in Colorado, but all of the US. The Commodore Mine is well-known for producing some of the best gem green examples of Sphalerite from any mine in Creede. Keep in mind that most Sphalerite from various mines in Colorado is black and opaque, but even the gemmy Sphalerites typically have some kind of golden/brown hue to them. The GREEN crystals are highly desirable and incredibly hard to find on the market, as few good ones were found back in the day. This piece is a notably rare CABINET sized example loaded with dozens of superb quality, razor-sharp, GEM twinned crystals of glowing green Sphalerite on Quartz matrix. The largest Sphalerite measures about 4 mm across, but they are beautiful to view up close, and when the crystals are backlit, they just GLOW with color and optical clarity. The vast majority of the crystals are pristine, which is rare as most of these pieces are typically riddled with little nicks and dings. The size of the piece is what really stands out here, as a good sized cabinet display specimen is almost unheard of when it comes to this particular material. A near must-have for any fan of Sphalerites, sulfides, Colorado minerals or specifically pieces from Creede.
Valued $2,000
From the collection of Gary and Terry Butts of Livermore, Colorado. This husband and wife collecting duo were childhood sweethearts, and have been together since they began dating as teenagers growing up in East Des Moines, Iowa in the 1950s. Both of them had an early interest in the hobby thanks to the fact that Terry's parents had a keen interest in lapidary, which sparked an interest in rocks for both of them. Gary and Terry were featured in an article in the Des Moines Register on Feb 4, 1962 (see photo in this listing) highlighting their interest and prowess in the hobby as youngsters. Gary traveled to various localities around the US as a teenager with his father (who worked in the tin industry), to personally collect specimens. He then attended the School of Mines in Golden, Colorado and graduated in 1967 with a degree in extractive metallurgical engineering. We went to work for Duval Corp at the Esperanza Mine south of Tucson, Arizona and then work for Cyprus Mines, Hazen Research, Pincock, Allen & Holt and the Colorado School of Mines Research Institute. His final job was in the mineral and environmental division of Intertek Testing Services of London, which owned the Canadian mineral testing company, Bonder Clegg. Gary's various jobs allowed him to travel the world and build his collection by buying a lot of specimens in person when they were coming out of the ground. Additionally, Terry's uncle was a miner in Creede, Colorado and later owned a rock shop which supplied Gary with specimens from the area. The specimens in this auction represent what Gary and Terry considered the "cream of the crop" of their collection.