Hessite on Quartz

Unknown Owner

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A complex single crystal that is so sharp it could come out of a 19th-century silver species textbook, perched in beautiful contrast with quartz, makes this perhaps the most sophisticated and competition-worthy hessite thumbnail that I have handled. The crystal stands 1.3 cm above the matrix and is complete, and pristine all-around 360 degrees. These are old - mid-1800s or maybe earlier in some cases, and few and far between these days. There are two radically different examples in the Shields Flynn collection here. This one came out of the Harvard Museum, and Ernie's card even states it was a trim off some larger specimen, via former curator Bill Metropolis to Shields' mentor Ernie Schlicter (per his card). This then went on to Shields Flynn's collection after Ernie passed and left him a core of 300 pieces. A true surprise in the collection, this balance and aesthetics elevates this to one of the top specimens in the collection of 1800 pieces.