HELVINE with Spessartine - image 1
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HELVINE with Spessartine

Unknown Owner
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Most collectors know of Wushan Spessartine mine in Fujian Province, China for, as the name suggests, Spessartine. It has certainly produced some of the world's finest display specimens of the manganese garnet, but it has also furnished collections with some excellent Helvine crystals and in aesthetic arrangements too. As a beryllium manganese silicate, Helvine is pretty rare worldwide and although some colossal crystals (to 1 5 cm on edge) have been reported from Argentina these Chinese Helvines are much more displayable. Large miniature in size, this really well-balanced specimen from the superb systematic collection assembled by the brothers Martin and Michael Günther (1951-2007 & 1956-2021) looks fantastic on display, with the intense glossy brown Helvine crystals reaching 1.2 cm across and with small rounded Spessartine crystals adding flashes of orange. The modified (truncated) tetrahedral Helvine crystal form is fascinating to look at too, and both crystals are in perfect shape. A really classy Helvine.

Product details

SizeSmall Cabinet
Dimensions6.3 x 4.0 x 2.7 cm
Added on03/07/2026

Known provenance

DateCollectorAcquisition price
07/2026Unknown Owner$800.00
Crystal ClassicsNot disclosed

Learn more

Mineral guide
Learn about Spessartine
(Mn3Al2Si3O12) is the vivid orange garnet prized for gemmy, sharp crystals and brilliant luster; forms with smoky quartz and feldspar.
Spessartine
Regional guide
Spessartine from Wushan Spessartine Mine, China
Wushan Spessartine Mine, Tongbei Yunxiao, Fujian - famed for saturated orange spessartine with smoky quartz, a landmark locality prized by collectors.