Dioptase on Calcite

Unknown Owner

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It is hard to get large dioptase specimens today in any kind of condition unless you want to pay a bloody fortune, six figures in several cases I have seen the last few years. However, I was able to get this as a fixer-upper from an older collector who had obtained it in the 1970s and never prepped it to remove the peripheral damaged parts which were distracting, that I had trimmed down to remove damage and enhance the display...and so now I can offer it for under 50k. I have never had a large diop of this quality, this price. They just have to cost more, almost a priori, normally. This is a massively large specimen to be in such good condition, almost 5 inches across and with dozens of crystals that are almost pristine with just a few teeny dings or damaged spots of no significance. It is the most desirable style in that they diops are both isolated and on white calcite. moreover, the calcite is crystallized and not just druse. I cannot tell you how many diops I have seen that do not possess these qualities! To make this really top, it does have the absolutely highest luster you could ask for. The crystals are even translucent when backlit.