Wulfenite (old USA classic circa 1900)

Item Description

Stephenson-Bennett Mine Wulfenites are a New Mexico classic and most of them date to the turn of the 1900's, and are seldom seen for sale. This very rich, small cabinet plate is covered with translucent, butterscotch-colored crystals with a classic tabular (bladed) habit. The crystals contrast nicely against the darker matrix. Like so many Wulfenite specimens, the delicate nature of the crystals lends itself to breakage, but even so this does not overtly affect the overall aesthetics, which are quite good. It's tough to find a Stevenson-Bennett piece of this quality. Valued $1000-1250. A dealer label here notes provenance from George English, a well known East Coast dealer of the late 1800's, although no original old label survives. Nevertheless, this is expected given it was probably mined 1890's-1910 range.