The Pala Chief Mine, located on Chief Mountain near Pala in San Diego County, California, was first opened in 1903 and is famed as the primary discovery site of kunzite, the purple variety of spodumene, which was first unearthed there in 1902 by Dr. George F. Kunz and named in his honor. The mine has yielded some of the finest kunzite crystals in southern California—ranging from delicate pink to deep violet—with excellent clarity and well-terminated prismatic habits, often occurring on a feldspathic matrix alongside quartz and muscovite. Collectors prize Chief Mine kunzites like this one for their unique color saturation and gem-quality.