Stibiotantalite & Lepidolite on DT bi-colored Tourmaline (old - Kay Robertson Coll.)

Item Description

Stibiotantalite, a rare Sb-Ta-Nb oxide, is generally found in granite pegmatites. It is an exotic and desirable accessory rarity from the famed Himalaya Mine. Tiny, lustrous, translucent, brown prismatic crystals, to 2 mm, are clustered at the center of the upper termination of this striking and unusual doubly terminated, bi-colored tourmaline crystal. The strange looking upper termination is layered tourmaline capped by a myriad of tiny terminated tourmalines, which are overgrown with more layered pastel-pink tourmaline. The gemmy and lustrous, well-striated body is classic "Himalaya pink" accented with areas of contrasting green tourmaline. The basal termination is apple-green with embedded tiny tourmalines and a coating. The beautiful, 1.0 cm, lilac lepidolite crystal cluster on the side is a super accent. Complete all-around and essentially pristine. The back is contacted, but there is little, if any, actual damage. Rare and excellent OLD-TIME combination tourmaline from the Kay Robertson Collection 5539 and acquired from the Plummer's at the 1968 MSSC Show. Kay is a prominent California collector, who specialized in European classics (see the article in the March-April, 2007 Mineralogical Record). 63 grams mass.