Fluorapatite (var: Carbonate-rich Fluorapatite) (ex Kay Robertson Collection)

Kovdor Zheleznyi Mine, Kovdor Massif, Murmanskaya Oblast', Northern Region, Russia
Miniature, 3.6 x 2.7 x 1.7 cm
Start Time: 09/14/2017 6:45:00 pm (CDT)
End Time: 09/21/2017 6:30:56 pm (CDT)
Auction Closed

Item Description

This material was called Francolite for a while, and is now defined as Carbonate-rich Fluorapatite (a variety of Fluorapatite). I remember seein a few of these pieces several years ago, and then they disappeared. Typically the material is a pale beige hue, and I'm told that these specimens from Russia gets their color from Copper content. This piece is a great example of Francolite featuring radiating turquoise-blue aggregates with a shimmering luster on host rock matrix. Ex Kay Robertson Collection (#7659). Kay is a prominent California collector, who specialized in European classics (see the article in the March-April, 2007 Mineralogical Record).

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