Spinel (fine large crystal)

Item Description

The Spinel crystals from Mahenge are among the best examples of the species to be found in the last 20+ years in terms of size, color and quality. Many people are familiar with the pink to red Spinels from Mogok in Myanmar, and while both localities feature crystals with that saturated rose hue, they are rarely found on matrix like they are at Mahenge. This full-sized miniature sized piece was found in 2010 and features an excellent quality, sharp, well-formed, euhedral octahedral crystal of strong rose-red colored Spinel with very minor attached grey-white marble matrix. The piece displays well from several angles. The crystal is gemmy when backlit, and it has the added bonus of displaying a slightly "silky" quality, similar to the silk that one would see in a Ruby or Sapphire crystal. This ethereal "smokiness" inside the crystals combined with the excellent color and size makes it some of the best quality Spinel you will find. No real damage that I can find anywhere, but there are some areas of interrupted growth where the Spinel crystals grew up against the marble. For a final touch, the Spinel crystal shows an intense cherry-red fluorescence under LW UV light.