Fluorite on Quartz and Calcite - image 1

Fluorite on Quartz and Calcite - image 2

Fluorite on Quartz and Calcite - image 4

Fluorite on Quartz and Calcite - image 5

Fluorite on Quartz and Calcite - image 6

Fluorite on Quartz and Calcite

Unknown Owner

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Shangbao fluorites, one of the single most recognizable fluorite styles in all the mineral world, simply do NOT get better than this, for the size. We have been going to China since the early 2000s when these came out - and have seen so much of the production over time, in China and outside; including in major collections here. This piece, so balanced and aesthetic, looks like it is carved. It is hard to tell in photos only, but it has real luster which many lack, combined with the superb color and patterning within. It is top of the top of the top for this material, for a small cabinet sized specimen. It has long been traced among prominent collectors, before ending up with Wayne Thompson for his notable fluorite collection where he aimed to get only the most aesthetic and colorful and refined of each style. The crystal is 360 degrees complete all around, and so is the piece, rather than the usual style of a crystal on matrix. This crystal surmounts the matrix, as a pinnacle within. That makes it special, different, and perhaps a bit expensive compared to the norm but also, just that extra bit refined and special. Out of thousands of these we have handled in the size range over decades, this ranks highly. Crystal atop is 4 cm. Subtly mesmerizing in person, in every detail. For the size range, we do not expect better to cycle back to market of this old style from the late 90s or early 2000s.