Aegirine on Microcline

Mount Malosa, Zomba, Southern Region, Malawi
Ex. Jack Halpern
Small Cabinet, 8.7 x 6.7 x 6.2 cm
Start Time: 01/11/2025 8:00:00 pm (CST)
End Time: 01/18/2025 6:39:00 pm (CST)
Auction Closed
Winning Bid: $725

Item Description

Mount Malosa is probably the best-known locality in Malawi. This distinctive pegmatite has produced some iconic examples of Aegirine, and I think it's safe to say that the world's finest Aegirine crystals have been found here. This particular piece features fine quality, sharp, highly lustrous, deep greenish-black prismatic crystals of Aegirine, measuring up to 3.5 cm long, sitting on light beige colored, notably lustrous, etched crystals of Microcline matrix. The piece is in great shape, with no major damage, and very aesthetic for the material. For a Pyroxene, you can't ask for much sharper or lustrous crystals, and I love the slightly tapered and "teeth"-like complex terminations.
ATTENTION: We are happy to announce our new book featuring the Jack Halpern collection entitled "Addicted to Beauty", which will be available in March from the Mineralogical Record. The following is an excerpt from Rob Lavinsky from the foreword of the book. "I am honored to have been entrusted with the deaccessioning of Jack Halpern’s famed collection. This book is not only designed to commemorate Jack's minerals, but also the man himself and how he inspired so many of us who are in the hobby today. Regarding the sale of his collection, Jack’s one comment and wish to me and to his family and friends was that we would carry forward his 'Legacy of Beauty' out into the broad world."
From the collection of Jack Halpern No. 3479. Jack was born May 18, 1920 in Brooklyn, New York, but has been a long-time resident of San Francisco. He assembled one of the great mineral collections in the world encompassing over 3,200 specimens with a specific emphasis on color, quality, and style/aesthetics, which is evident in every piece. He admired specimens of all sizes from thumbnails to large cabinets and the vast majority of them rank from fine to world-class in their quality.
Above all else, Jack is considered to be the greatest gentleman in the modern era of mineral collecting. He is beloved by all those who have met him, and he truly is one of the most iconic figures in the mineral world. We recently acquired Jack's collection, and the VAST majority of these pieces will be offered here in the auctions, as we feel that everyone deserves and equal opportunity at acquiring these important, well-documented and fine quality pieces for their collections. We are honored to have the opportunity to offer Jack's treasures to everyone on a regular basis in the auctions.
We encourage you to read our blog post at https://www.irocks.com/the-jack-halpern-collection or his profile on the Mineralogical Record website https://mineralogicalrecord.com/biographies_labels/halpernjack/ for more information

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Bidding History

Bid Amount Bid Time
$725 01/18/2025 6:35:01 pm (CST)
$700 * 01/18/2025 6:34:51 pm (CST)
$700 * 01/18/2025 6:34:51 pm (CST)
$675 01/18/2025 6:34:19 pm (CST)
$650 01/18/2025 6:31:21 pm (CST)
$635 01/18/2025 6:31:21 pm (CST)
$625 01/18/2025 6:31:14 pm (CST)
$600 01/18/2025 6:31:14 pm (CST)
$575 01/18/2025 6:30:42 pm (CST)
$550 01/18/2025 6:29:34 pm (CST)
$540 01/18/2025 6:29:34 pm (CST)
$525 01/18/2025 6:29:16 pm (CST)
$500 01/18/2025 6:29:16 pm (CST)
$470 01/18/2025 6:27:13 pm (CST)
$460 01/18/2025 6:27:13 pm (CST)
$435 01/18/2025 6:25:15 pm (CST)
$425 01/18/2025 6:25:15 pm (CST)
$415 01/18/2025 6:18:59 pm (CST)
$405 01/18/2025 6:16:43 pm (CST)
$400 01/18/2025 6:16:43 pm (CST)
$365 01/18/2025 6:15:15 pm (CST)
$355 01/18/2025 6:15:08 pm (CST)
$350 01/18/2025 6:15:08 pm (CST)
$311 01/18/2025 4:26:54 pm (CST)
$301 01/18/2025 4:26:54 pm (CST)
$250 01/17/2025 8:38:59 pm (CST)
$240 01/17/2025 8:38:59 pm (CST)
$233 01/17/2025 7:22:16 pm (CST)
$223 01/17/2025 7:22:16 pm (CST)
$210 01/17/2025 7:21:59 pm (CST)
$200 01/17/2025 7:21:59 pm (CST)
$180 01/17/2025 7:21:51 pm (CST)
$170 01/17/2025 7:21:51 pm (CST)
$154 01/16/2025 7:01:08 pm (CST)
$150 01/16/2025 7:01:08 pm (CST)
$144 01/16/2025 1:21:09 pm (CST)
$134 01/16/2025 1:20:49 pm (CST)
$110 01/16/2025 1:20:32 pm (CST)
$100 01/16/2025 1:20:32 pm (CST)
$85 01/16/2025 1:20:23 pm (CST)
$75 01/16/2025 1:20:23 pm (CST)
$45 01/16/2025 11:02:08 am (CST)
$40 01/16/2025 11:02:08 am (CST)
$30 01/14/2025 2:55:09 pm (CST)
$25 01/14/2025 2:55:09 pm (CST)
$20 01/14/2025 9:45:56 am (CST)
$15 01/14/2025 9:45:56 am (CST)
$10 01/13/2025 7:44:27 pm (CST)
* Proxy Bid Battle: In the event of two customers inputting matching proxy bids, the leading bid goes to the earliest of the two proxy bids. Tie winners are shown in bold.