Kermesite

The locality known as the "Kermesite occurrence" at Dafeng, Shanglin Co., Nanning Prefecture, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, China came to prominence in about 2002, with the appearance of some exceptional crystallized Kermesite specimens. These specimens redefined what we expected of Kermesite and the locality became an instant classic, usurping the famous historic European occurrences. Remarkably, twenty years on, very few specimens from this discovery are seen on the market. This lovely miniature specimen from this find displays a layer of interlocking thick prismatic, to acicular, Kermesite crystals reaching to around 2 cm in length. The crystals are on a small amount of matrix, which is a rare feature for this occurrence - most having been loose crystals. The crystals give the impression of being very dark grey in colour, but have flashes of cherry red, to burgundy. Areas of cream coloured crystals at the base and in the matrix are likely to be Senarmontite or Valentinite. A world-class Kermesite from the world's best occurrence.