Calcite (var: Manganoan)

Item Description

A beautiful and aesthetic display specimen of the classic pink Calcites from Dalnegorsk. In the early 1990s, there were a good number of these fine quality Calcites on the market, many direct from Russian dealers, but the quantity has dwindled over the last 20+ years, and little is available these days. This particular specimen was mined in 1994 and is a stellar example of this beloved material. This showy cabinet sized piece features a pair of large, very sharp, well-formed, doubly-terminated, tabular, flattened, hexagonal / trigonal manganese-bearing Calcite crystals with a beautiful soft pink hue measuring up to 6.6 cm across which are perched atop the underlying matrix. With a bit of backlighting, you can see that the crystals are actually gemmy in areas, which is not terribly common for this material. If you look closely, there are actually a few secondary smaller Calcites which have white overgrowths on their terminations, creating a beautiful accent. Additionally the matrix is covered with hundreds of very thin, wafer-like blades of chalky white Calcite, showing that there was two generations / depositions on the piece. I can't find any damage to the main Calcite crystals, and it displays wonderfully as you can see in the photos. Priced in the inventory at $4,500.