Turquoise (crystallized!) (ex Josef Vajdak)

Item Description

Everybody is familiar with massive uncrystallized Turquoise from the American southwest, and in some cases, this material has been analyzed and found NOT to be Turquoise at all, but rather Planerite. Gene Foord did a lot of work on the Turquoise Group years ago where he said "Most samples of 'Turquoise' are cation-deficient or are Planerite" (see http://www.minersoc.org/pages/Archive-MM/Volume_62/62-1-93.pdf for more info). This piece is in fact confirmed Turquoise and arguably some of the most well-known examples of the species, due to the fact that it's actually beautifully crystallized! Like all specimens from the Bishop Mine in Virginia, these crystals are micros, but they are lovely to view up close. Sharp, lustrous, well-formed, electric blue to soft blue color triclinic blades or "bursts" of Turquoise can be seen on one side of the underlying matrix. We have photographed the specimen with a Canon MP-E 65 mm macro lens to better illustrate the quality and enhance the detail. This is the only piece of this species that we have to offer and comes with a classic label from Josef Vajdak / Pequa Rare Minerals, which immediately increases the value. You can read Joe's biography here: http://www.minrec.org/labels.asp?colid=1371 Another label attached to the piece says that the specimen was collected in 1942! Do not miss out on this one if you collect micro minerals or hard to find material!