Gypsum var. Selenite

Unknown Owner

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Fontainebleau south of Paris in France is renowned for a unique form of sand-included Calcite, but not for Gypsum. That said, I have seen several very fine Gypsum var. Selenite crystals labelled as from Fontainebleau over the years, but the mystery continues. Most likely, it is from one of the large Gyspum mines in the vicinity of Paris. This excellent 12.5 cm long waterclear monoclinic bladed Selenite crystal, with a fan-like spray of similar shaped but smaller crystals protruding from one end comes with an old Michael E. Smith label. Michael was a well-regarded collector and dealer based in Yorkshire, England who died during the 1990s. The crystals remarkably, for such a soft mineral, have very little damage - just one or two minor scuffs.