Spinel (twins) (2-piece set)

Item Description

This is a classic 2-piece set of the beloved, world-class twinned Spinel crystals from Mogok, Myanmar. These crystals are both notably sharp, sharp, lustrous, well-formed twins (genuine Spinel-law twins on the {111} face) of beautiful fiery reddish-pink. Both pieces are complete "floaters", crystallized on all sides. Both crystals shows very well-defined twin lines / planes, and look good from either side. The smaller twin is quite gemmy, virtually transparent in areas. These are beautiful old specimens dating back a few decades, and quite difficult to obtain today. The crystals weigh 3.73 grams & 0.61 grams respectively. PLEASE NOTE: All mining at Mogok is at a complete standstill. The combination of the political upheaval in Myanmar and the COVID pandemic have left the area abandoned, and it is unclear when or if mining will again resume. Now we are getting confirmed reports that the small amount of material that is available is selling for much more than a few years ago, and even if mining resumes at any level, it is likely that the price of fine minerals from Myanmar will certainly rise well beyond what we were used to seeing in the past. If you collect minerals from Myanmar, pick these up fast while they are still available, because good pieces will be hard to find for a while it seems. I value this set at $2,500, but based upon everything that's happening, it's very likely worth more in today's market for size, color and quality. These pieces comes 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 was mentored by Dr. Frederick Pough of the American Museum of Natural History, and learned 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.