Topaz (classic material)

Item Description

When it comes to famous old classic minerals of European, some of the most attractive and well-known examples are the famous yellow / golden Topaz crystals from Schneckenstein in Saxony. These wonderful and eye-catching crystals have been known for centuries, and you will see them appear in the old lithographs among the standard representations for Topaz (along with those from the Urals in Russia) in the world for that time. This beautiful small cabinet hosts several fine quality, very sharp, lustrous, gemmy, light golden colored crystals of Topaz measuring up to 1.3 cm long sitting on greisen matrix. I can't see any real damage of note with the naked eye, just a few tiny imperfections that you really can't see without a loupe. It's not easy to find showy matrix specimens from Schneckenstein like this anymore on the market, and it's important to note that these crystals are the classic YELLOW hue and not the less desirable colorless material. This is old material, probably mined in the 1800s. From the collection of Kurt Hefendehl (#83 D), a well-known German collector all over Europe with worldwide contacts to dealers and collectors. He started collecting seriously at the age of 14 and his great and varied worldwide collection reached over 6000 pieces. He was very active mineralogically until shortly before his passing in 2020 at the age of 82. Considering his collection had a large number of pieces, it still had an unusually high standard of quality from most worldwide localities. He particularly specialized in all classics as well as minerals of the Black Forest, where he spent much time collecting. His Black Forest and German subcollections went to his good friend Wolfgang Wendel. We at The Arkenstone have the privilege of offering the remainder of this great worldwide collection over the next two to three years through our various platforms.