Tourmaline embedded in Smoky Quartz ex Larson

Item Description

Rarely do we see pegmatite combination specimens like this from Myanmar (Burma) or for that matter impaled quartz points like from anywhere else, frankly. This is a dramatic specimen from Burma, from the famous Burma minerals collection of Bill Larson. A robust mostly gemmy, nicely formed, light Smoky Quartz crystal is host to a pastel pink Elbaite Tourmaline crystal that penetrates it perpendicularly through the middle. The Quartz crystal is very attractive with glassy faces, good light smoky transparency through much of it with a cloudy core area and the crystal is interesting in that if you look at it in detail, it's not quite sceptered and not quite doubly terminated either! And then there's the pastel pink, transparent to translucent striated Elbaite crystal that measures 5.2 cm in length that dramatically and completely penetrates the Smoky Quartz crystal. The Tourmaline starts out as a tight diverging spray and then disappears into the Quartz with one perfect termination poking out the other side! The opposing end of the crystal where the divergence starts is terminated as well and may have fractured and regrown and added a thin, bright, yellow-brown terminus. Classic Burma tourmaline style but...different than all the others! Note that this is NOT modern material and although Burma mining is reduced and exports are on and off illegal now, this was mined 15 years or more ago anyways (prior to 2008 when he stopped adding to the collection such things) and is totally unique to that place and time. Even if they were mining now, we would not get more of these. For more information on the amazing Larson Burma collection, built over 40 years of going to Burma, see our other website at: https://www.irocks.com/burma-and-spinels-in-my-collection