Rhodochrosite

Unknown Owner

Help improve this recordNo owner is registered for this specimen yet. If it's yours or you know more about it, you can add the owner, provenance, publications and other details.

This startling surprise from China is a triangular-shaped rhodochrosite crystal, a floater, complete all around. Is it twinned ? - probably! It is certainly unusual, and a rare item for the famous Yaogangxian Mine. We had seen smaller examples of this habit in the past, but only rarely does this mine give up rhodochrosite. Rock notes on his label that he bought a 10,000 piece lot (YES!) from the miners on one of his trips there in 2006, early days still. Things were sometimes sold by the piece, in this size. He kept it for his collection. Note, that this is extremely rare from the mine, and from China itself - or anywhere - in this crystal habit. It also predates much larger, similar looking rhodochrosites from Wutong in another province, by a few years (they are odd shapes as well, but not as equant and triangular as this). Overall, a seemingly unique surprise from the end of the flood years of YGX material, and from an important collection.