EarthWonders - ELBAITE - Tourmaline Double Terminated

A long and slender pink double terminated Elbaite Tourmaline crystal, 15.4 cm long, from a recently discovered gem Tourmaline pocket found in the mining district of Coronel Murta in Minas Gerais, Brazil. This ex-matrix Elbaite crystal is a uniform delicate mix of raspberry-red, rose-pink, and cloudy creamy sugar candy-pink. The crystal is double terminated, with opposite terminations being totally different. One is a simple flat pinacoid, with a smooth face with a waxy lustre and is composed partly of gemmy rose-pink Elbaite and translucent, cloudy-cream, sugar candy-pink Elbaite. The opposite termination is built from a series of stepped terminating small prisms as the single prism resorts to ever narrowing prisms, possibly controlled by a diminishing supply of metal-rich brine within the pegmatite pocket. These terminations are shallow-sided triclinic pyramids, all with a bright glassy lustre and of cloudy sugar candy-pink culminating in gemmy rose-pink caps. The prism body is a complete mixture of mainly semi-transparent rose-pink to cranberry Elbaite with included zones of translucent sugar candy-pink. In cross-section the prism forms a convexly-curved equilateral triangle. This crystal has undergone four repairs following breaks during tectonic disturbance while in-situ, a common tendency with Tourmaline pockets. These repairs have been done by experts in this field, rendering them almost invisible. The prism faces are finely and complexly striated with a glossy silk lustre and texture. A fabulous double terminated Elbaite Tourmaline from Coronel Murta in Brazil.

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Crystal Classics

Tucson, Arizona, USA