D4233 - Keyite (rich!!!) - $900
Tsumeb, Namibia
ex. Neal Yedlin collection (obtained in June of 1975)
Small Thumbnail, 0.9 x 0.7 x 0.7 cm
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This specimen is an amazingly rich piece for what it is...if not for everybody, I admit. Keyite is one of the rarest of Tsumeb microminerals and this piece is rich with EYE-VISIBLE seams of brilliant blue keyite crystals, making it the richest piece I have seen for sale (though I admit I have only seen 3 in the last 15 years of looking). Moreover, it was in the important micromount collection of Neal Yedlin, widely known as one of the very best micromounters. It preserves his own labeling and his own box with label on the bottom.




T-12 Olivenite - $750
Tsumeb, Namibia
Miniature, 4 x 3.5 x 2 cm


A remarkable specimen in that, unlike most Tsumeb olivenites I have seen, we here have a fine euhedral crystal instead of a mammilary mass or acicular crystal. Isolated oliventites of this quality and size (to 1.3 cm) are extremely rare, and this has the fortune of being a display-worthy and attractive specimen as well as a significant rarity.




T-44 Leadhillite with Melanotekite - $4000
Tsumeb, Namibia
Large Miniature, 5 x 5 x 4 cm

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This is a fine display-quality specimen of leadhillite, with excellent lustre and sharp crystals that wrap all around the top of the specimen, perched on matrix of massive leadhillite (and that is somewhat gemmy!). I have seen few pieces for sale of this magnitude in recent years, and several worse that were offered for far more money.




T-24 Jamesite with Duftite - $600 (SOLD)
Tsumeb, Namibia
ex. Jelks Collection
Small Miniature, 3 x 3 x 2.5 cm

Jamesite is an exceedingly rare lead zinc iron arsenate. I have personally nevert seen another for sale, but I am told that this IS indeed an excellent specimen for the species by somebody who has. This piece features eye-visible (sub-mm) red crystals in a rich zone in the upper-right of the matrix. It's easy to spot and has also been independently analyzed by Joef Vajdak in the Czech Republic and by Marcus Origlieri at the Univerity of Arizona.

Note that in the reference book, TSUMEB II by Dr. Georg Gebhard, the species is designated "RRR," i.e. "Extremely rare single occurrence with less than 10 specimens known" (obviously not accounting for later trims).




RC-21 Scorodite - $750 (SOLD)
ex. Werner Quhlwetter collection of Bayergoien, Germany
(formerly exhibited in the Mainz Museum in Germany)
ex. Ralph Clark Thumbnail Collection
Tsumeb, Namibia
Thumbnail, 2.4 x 2 x 2 cm

This is a unique specimen in my experience since good scoro thumbs usually consist of broken single crystals and here we have a veritable hedgerow of bright blue crystals on matrix arranged in an attractive sweeping pattern. In person, the color is much darker than it appears here, and has a sparkling color-shifting quality to it that is difficult to capture on camera. It is a very impressive thumbnail that stands out because of its color and innate sparkliness even in mediocre light! Ralph described this piece on the accompanying label card as an "absolutely unique 22mm hemisphere of lustrous rich blue crystals to 6 mm on matrix."




T-61 Schneiderhohnite - $400
Tsumeb, Namibia
ex. Barlow Collection
Thumbnail, 1.5 x 0.6 x 0.4 cm

A single superb crystal of the extremely rare iron arsenate Schneiderhohnite, exceptionally sharp and lustrous. It has a few spots with brownish matrix attached, which i left on to give some contrast though it could be further cleaned.




T-13 Schneiderhohnite - $125
Tsumeb, Namibia
ex. Barlow Collection
Thumbnail, 1.6 x 1.6 x 0.8 cm

A solid cluster of the extremely rare iron arsenate Schneiderhohnite, with sharp crystals to 5mm interspersed within more massive material.




T-14 Schneiderhohnite - $125
Tsumeb, Namibia
ex. Barlow Collection
Thumbnail, 2 x 1.5 x 0.6 cm

A solid cluster of the extremely rare iron arsenate Schneiderhohnite, with sharp crystals to 5mm interspersed on top of more massive material.




T-20 Dundasite (var. cuprian) with Azurite and unknown green mineral - $600 (SOLD)
Tsumeb, Namibia
Miniature, 4 x 3.5 x 3.5 cm


Dundasite is rare enough but this beautiful blue dundasite apparently occured only once and many of the specimens were in all likelihood sold off as plancheite and thus misidentified. This one was "rediscovered" by Marcus Origlieri in an old collection (and confirmed by his analaysis at University of Arizona). The occurrence of cuprian blue dundasite is mentioned in the Gebhard book TSUMEB II, and the species is designated as "R", i.e. "rare with few occurrences of just a few known specimens." In this case, not only do we have rich covering of attractive crystals in the form of spherical aggregates, but we also have associated azurite and another unidentified green mineral in sub-mm xls.



 
The Arkenstone - Dr. Robert Lavinsky
PO Box 450788
Garland, TX 75045-0788
Phone 972-414-9003 "normal hours" Central Time Zone, E-Fax 413-581-0589

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