Cassiterite (gemmy) with Quartz (ex Franceso Bedogne Collection)

Item Description

This piece came labeled as coming from Mt. Xuebaoding in China, but the original number on the label doesn't match up with the piece (#167), and then you can see that Bedogne added a second number to the label (#1831) so that this piece matched the label. With that said, I think the piece is from the Viloco Mine in Bolivia, as the matrix and associated Quartz is indicative of the locality. Additionally, the Cassiterites are not the complex twins seen at Mt. Xuebaoding, and they're actually gemmy, which I can't recall seeing in Cassiterite from that locality. If anybody out there has additional information to contribute for this piece, please feel free to drop us a line. The specimen features superb quality, very sharp, lustrous, GEMMY Cassiterite crystals measuring up to 1.3 cm with associated Quartz on fractured host rock matrix. The main Cassiterite crystal looks fantastic when backlit, and you'd be hard pressed to find crytals with the combination of luster, form and gemminess from any locality. From the worldwide collection of famed Italian mineral collector, field collector and author, Francesco Bedogne of Sondrio, Italy. Bedogne wrote dozens of articles and several books about the mineralogy of Italian Alpine localities such as Val Bregaglia, Val Masino, Val Codera, Val Spluga, Valtellina and the famous Val Malenco. He was also the founder of the Valtellinese Mineralogical Institute.