A classic combination specimen from Tongren, China featuring a large, crimson-red Cinnabar crystal associated with numerous, glassy Quartz crystals. The large Cinnabar looks like a single crystal, however, casual inspection reveals it to be an intimate intergrowth of two crystals that together comprise a large duo that is 2.3 x 2.1 x 1 cm in dimension. The piece was obviously kept out of sunlight; the crystal is a rich, translucent to essentially gemmy, crimson-red which will fade with exposure to the UV component of light but do fine in normal indoor cases. When backlit, the cinnabar crystal glows with color. It has sharp edges and lightly striated crystal faces and the contrast with the Quartz crystals is sublime. The Quartz crystals are are all stout regardless if they are a few millimeters or 3 cm. A few of the larger ones have an attractive yellow tint to them probably due to a trace amount of iron staining. It is a beautifully composed specimen! This is a very old style, and a piece that should be from the late 1990s or early 2000s. The mine is now closed for environmental reasons. Although once common, these are now gone into collections. Special pieces like this almost never turn up for sale again. It is at the very finest caliber, for the size, color contrast, association, and style, that you can get in this size class.
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