Image: Elbaite-Lepidolite-Quartz-gem7-x1a

Description: Elbaite, Lepidolite, Quartz

Locality: Pederneira claim, São José da Safira, Doce valley, Minas Gerais, Southeast Region, Brazil (Locality at mindat.org) Size: large cabinet, 21 x 15 x 14 cm Tourmaline var. Elbaite with Quartz & Lepidolite on Cleavelandite

Modern Art in minerals, I call this one...and family and friends who are not into minerals immediately "get it" when they see this in my case (i had it at home for a few years). This fantastic display piece is pristine all around, though multiply repaired and restored at junctions (as all from this pocket of any size were). The crystals exhibit an amazing juxtaposition of prismatic and flat basal terminations in a series: pointy-flat-pointy-flat-pointy right across the piece. Never seen the like, with so many examples of two different terminations of tourmaline upon the same matrix?! The largest tourmaline is 11cm and I can tell you that, as far as I am concerned, the price is reasonable because individual crystals that size or clusters such as we have on the right would add up to the whole pirce pretty quickly here, if it was trimmed and sold in pieces (the tragedy!). Stunning white Cleavelandite is host, and it is sprinkled with metallic purple lepidolite as well so that color abounds and everything is nice and sparkly. The gorgeous multicolored tourmalines (to 4.3 inches or 11 cm in height) stick up and out; while gemmy, clear, perfect quartz points grow amongst the tourmaline on the right side and stick out laterally towards the viewer in front (they are so gemmy they are difficult to photograph in contcxt here - better in person!). The tourmalines have a very 3-dimensional geometry, poking out every which way. When this pocket first came to light during re-mining projects to expand specimen production at the Pederneira Mine in 2001, it all went up to Denver to be prepped and repaired (all large specimens had come apart, and had to be put back together carefully using new techniques developed partly for the purpose). Zinn, a longtime Denver collector and longtime supporter of the company handling the pocket, got a few specimens from the find. This is one of those cases where, for the beauty of the mineral, even a sophisticated collector who might normally shun repairs , will readily accept them in context...so long as the result is as clean and beautiful as this piece is. This was Marty's pick of the lot for a cabinet sized matrix specimen, and he had an early shot at it, too. I have seen pieces at literally triple the price that I did not like so much as this one! It is, despite all the hundreds of specimens I have now seen over the years as the Ped ramped up production, still a unique pocket for combination of colors and matrix. Each pocket over the years has been distinct. This piece in particular always was, again out of literally hundreds of pieces I have seen, one of my absolute favorites and one I lusted after when the Zinn collection was sold. Collector's Edge, who sold it initially to Marty and then handled it again in the collection dispersal, did me a kind favor by letting me acquire it 3 years ago and I have kept it here to look at ever since. I just loved the piece, and look at it every week...but I simply do not collect random minerals and compete with my customers, and so it is time to let it go. Truly, sales pitch aside, it hurts to even offer it. This is one of those pieces that, even amongst a tonne of tourmaline from the same mine, stands out. I would always want it back again, should the owner change his mind a ta later time. Comes with custom lucite base for easy display. (First photo by Joe Budd studios)
Author: Robert M. Lavinsky
Usage Terms: Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0
License: CC-BY-SA-3.0
License Link: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/
Attribution Required?: Yes