Spinel (6 crystal set)

Item Description

It is nearly impossible to obtain fine quality Spinel specimens from Mogok these days due to political upheaval, which has had a serious effect in Mogok. No mining is taking place, the mineral marketplace is completely closed down. What little makes it way out of the country is incredibly expensive based upon reports we're getting. This is a great opportunity to pick up a fine parcel of 6 Spinel crystals, all of which are well-formed octahedrons with sharp, defined, lustrous faces and range from lilac hues to rich reddish colors to one black opaque example. Most of the crystals are essentially complete "floaters", as the majority of them show no real damage, nor a point of attachment. The smaller lilac colored crystals are quite gemmy, and even the dark red crystals pass light when backlit. The crystals ranges in size from 1.3 x 1.0 x 0.7 cm to 0.6 x 0.5 x 0.4 cm. For reference, these crystals were mined around 2000, and the best of these specimens are simply the finest in the world for what they are. This is an example of a non-pegmatite gem mineral for which many collectors probably do have a good specimen in their collections.
These pieces come to us from the legendary Ron Romanella (February 28, 1932 - October 24, 2022), a well-known gem and mineral dealer from New York City. He studied mineralogy at Columbia School of Mines, and he was mentored by Dr. Frederick Pough of the American Museum of Natural History, while learning about the business side from well-known mineral dealers Hugh Ford and Maurice Hammoneau. Ron himself was a mentor to other successful East Coast mineral dealers such as Larry Conklin, Herb Obodda and even employed Dave Wilber for a time. He largely transitioned out of selling minerals as his business focused more on gems for the last few decades, and his sons Michael and Jerry have been running the family business in Scottsdale for many years now. With that said, Ron was one of the great powerhouse mineral dealers in the US for many years, offering fine quality specimens and gem crystals from classic and contemporary localities. Among his top achievements, is that Ron is credited with importing the first known crystals of Tanzanite into the US in the 1960s.