A significant crystal of Carbon! This is a large, very bright crystal of Graphite from the Kiruna, Sweden area. It is a somewhat foliated, very sculptural specimen of steel-gray, Graphite (elemental carbon) with a submetallic luster and a super greasy feel. This is an exceptional and relatively large Graphite crystal from here, or any worldwide locality for that matter, measuring at 8.5 cm across with much of the original hexagonal outline intact and only minor peripheral issues that aren't readily noticeable. This is certainly a competitive small cabinet piece of a very important mineral species, which we seldom see in large, collector-worthy crystals over 2 cm. In fact, this is huge for the quality; and likely an antique from long ago (1800s or early 1900s). I bought it in an old collection ages ago and sold it in the early 2000s to Paul Stahl of Mannheim, who owned it for several decades. Sharp fine thumbnail specimens from Canada sell for hundreds of dollars. We have not much to compare a crystal this size to, beyond a very few others we have handled over the years.
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