Fluorite on Dolomite and Quartz

A beautiful purple crystal, 8 x 6 x 5 cm in size, highlights this specimen from old 1990s finds at the famous Shangbao fluorite mine in Hunan, China. This is a highly unusual shape showing intergrown cubic and cuboctahedral crystals; and we believe it is twinned. It shows a flat plane to the front as you view it, but it looks like a spinel twinned fluorite (although atypical), from the sides. At the time this came out, Shangbao was producing in its heyday and had more styles than the simple few fluorites we see today from miners going back into old tunnels, which are generally all the same style and shape. This is a fascinating fluorite from anywhere, China or not! It rests on dolomite and quartz matrix. Dr. Erika Pohl-Ströher - 58519