Calcite on Quartz (old classic) Kay Robertson Coll.

Item Description

A 2.0 cm, sharp, hexagonal, layered, two-toned, translucent calcite crystal is very jauntily set on the very interesting drusy quartz matrix from the historic mines at St. Andreaberg. The fabulous pearlescent secondary growth termination of the calcite is composed of very sharp, incised, individual calcite rhombs. It's hard to see in the photos. Part of the fascinating drusy quartz matrix appears to be a large partial hexagonal calcite rhomb, that the quartz has pseudomorphed. Rich pink fluorescence. The district has produced nearly 400 different combinations of crystal forms! The last mines closed in 1910 and wonderful specimens, such as this probably date to the mid-1800s or even earlier. Essentially pristine, except for the attachment at one end and a contact on one side. Ex Kay Robertson Collection # 3806 and acquired in Hamburg in December, 1964. Kay assembled a nice suite of classics and rarities from this famed district. Kay is a prominent California collector, who specialized in European classics (see the article in the March-April, 2007 Mineralogical Record). See the Mineralogical Record St. Andreasberg Special Issue, May-June, 2017, Vol. 48, No. 3.