Apophyllite

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Many people think of Indian green apophyllite as rather common stuff. However, I would argue that the top quality level of material coming out today stands on its own merits as a superior mineral find, by any standard. Pretty specimens are common - Great specimens are not. This, then, is a great specimen from an old find and in a style not matched by anythign being mined today that I have seen. In the older days, in the1970s-early 1980s when this material was first starting to come out in quantity, there was a unique style found at the Pashan Hills qurry which had these rows of sharp, mint-colored crystals standing upright on white stilbite. To this day, the style remains unique to that era. They are more minty-colored, more sparkly and lustrous, and I love the geometry of the "hedgerows" standing upon rolling hills of stilbite-coated basalt matrix. This is a combination immediately recognizable and this particular specimen is very similar to the famous example from this pocket (which I handled and sold in about 2000), fesatured on thecover of Min Record in 1984. With long hedgerows on a huge matrix, almost no damage, and sharp crystals to 3 cm, this stands as a superior example of the find. These are, to me, the most desirable style of Indian apophyllite to own save only a few exceptions from small pockets during more recent times. Comes with custom lucite base for display.