Sylvanite on Quartz

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ex. Dr. Werner Paar Collection Sylvanite, the rare silver and gold telluride, was discovered here at this TYPE LOCALITY in 1835. It is known at its best for this surreal, metallic-organic growth that seems to have pattern, when crystallized at we see here. More technically speaking, these are flat-lying crystals in the form of typical graphic intergrowths ("Schrifterz"). The effect is bizarre, and beautiful. Good handsized specimens from this type locality, most surely dating to the mid 1800s or before, are extremely hard to obtain today on the market.According to MINDAT: Named after the Transylvania region of Romania, where it was first found, and Sylvanium, one of the names proposed for the newly discovered element tellurium, which it contains.