Topaz var: Imperial (classic material)

Item Description

A beautiful old-time Imperial Topaz crystal that dates back to 1973-1974. This miniature sized piece is an attractive, fine quality, gemmy single crystal featuring that classic orange color associated with these famous specimens from Ouro Preto, Brazil. This locality is unquestionably the source of the finest examples of the material in the world. The crystal has the typical steep termination that you'll see in these specimens and the color is well saturated to boot. It is orange for sure, and by no means "brownish". All the faces are lustrous without any kind of coating. I can't find any major damage, but there are few small imperfections along the prism, and it's understandably contacted on the base where it was removed from the pocket. Weight is 9.7 grams. From the collection of world famous mineral dealer Richard ("Rich") A. Kosnar (1946-2007), who was the namesake for the phosphate Kosnarite, and had a strong presence in Brazil in the 1970s when he imported many gem crystals during that period. Valued $1,500.