Name: Gaudefroyite
Brand: The Arkenstone
Price: 9000 USD
Availability: InStock

Gaudefroyite

A significant and rare cluster of elongated Gaudefroyite crystals from the Kalahari Manganese Field of South Africa! These came out in the late 1980s and clusters like this, along with matrix specimens, were rare - from one pocket only. They are legendary among Kalahari collectors and I have only seen specimens turn up for sale in a major Australian collection (which is now with Steve Smale) and in the Charlie Key collection when we obtained it in 2010. This is a choice display miniature of top quality, comparable only with a very few others I have seen in Aussie museums and in the Steve Smale collection (his is illustrated in one of the Smale Collection books, and is larger to be sure, but he also paid six figures for it)! We have not seen another of this caliber on the open market since Steve bought his. To qualify, while there are other examples of this species in different habits, they are not of the same "elegant" style, from this particular pocket, and with such complete crystals. The cluster consists of more than a dozen, very sharp, well-formed, jet-black crystals to one inch in length and all of them display great luster. It is so 3-dimensional that it proved difficult to photograph in focus, actually. The crystals have well developed prism faces that are striated, elongated, and have pyramidal terminations. Only a few are incomplete, out of the whole cluster - it should be considered a 360 degree specimen. Gaudefroyite is an uncommon calcium-manganese borate-carbonate hydroxide and this locality has produced the best of species, of which this must be considered a competition level miniature worthy of the finest collections of such rare species and Kalahari classics. We obtained it in a small purchase of top specimens from the well-known collection of the late dealer/collector Colin Owen; our personal top pick from the collection, actually.

$9,000.00