Corundum var. Sapphire

Ratnapura, Sri Lanka
Ex. Alex Schauss
Thumbnail, 3.4 x 1.1 x 1.1 cm
Start Time: 01/20/2023 7:00:00 pm (CST)
End Time: 01/29/2023 1:15:00 pm (CST)
Auction Closed
Winning Bid: $1,750

Item Description

This is a stunning maroon-red crystal of sapphire, with deep color, excellent gemminess, and a sharp form combined with one of the more rare and fancy colors for a gem sapphire from ANY location in the world. Most of these Sri Lankan sapphire crystals are found in gem gravels, which were eroded out of the original deposit and rolled, moved, transported over eons into new locations and buried in stream sediment, where they waited for tens of millions of years to be found by artisanal miners. The rare crystal like this, with sharp form and no damage due to millions of years being rolled about by nature, is from an actual mine and found through hard rock digging. It is exceptionally rare to find a perfectly balanced, equant crystal with no damage, and intact. This is a 3.4 x 1.1 x 1.1 cm double-terminated translucent maroon-red, elongated steep bipyramidal crystal, properly a small miniature when stood vertically. The bottom is not quite terminated, and the top has a small indentation, which we think is complete, right at the tip. This weighs 33.4 carats. It will fit in a regulation thumbnail cube if oriented slightly diagonal, but it could also be displayed as a small miniature, standing true vertical. With a little backlighting, it is a stunning object. Published in Mineralogical Record, Refined Elegance: The Small Treasures of Mineralogy, November 2022. It is much better in person. Valued $3000-plus simply based on weight.

Did You Know We Offer Custom Bases?

Learn More

Bidding History

Bid Amount Bid Time
$1,750 01/29/2023 1:08:10 pm (CST)
$1,700 01/29/2023 1:08:10 pm (CST)
$1,650 01/29/2023 1:03:02 pm (CST)
$1,600 01/29/2023 1:03:02 pm (CST)
$1,550 01/29/2023 12:55:48 pm (CST)
$1,500 01/29/2023 12:55:48 pm (CST)
$1,450 01/29/2023 12:54:31 pm (CST)
$1,400 01/29/2023 12:54:31 pm (CST)
$1,350 01/29/2023 12:51:53 pm (CST)
$1,300 01/29/2023 12:51:53 pm (CST)
$1,250 01/29/2023 12:46:01 pm (CST)
$1,200 01/29/2023 12:46:01 pm (CST)
$1,150 01/29/2023 10:08:55 am (CST)
$1,100 01/29/2023 10:08:55 am (CST)
$1,050 01/29/2023 10:08:29 am (CST)
$1,000 01/29/2023 10:08:29 am (CST)
$975 01/29/2023 10:08:15 am (CST)
$950 01/29/2023 10:08:14 am (CST)
$925 01/29/2023 8:09:48 am (CST)
$900 01/29/2023 8:09:48 am (CST)
$850 01/22/2023 7:47:54 pm (CST)
$825 01/22/2023 5:46:31 pm (CST)
$800 * 01/22/2023 5:46:19 pm (CST)
$800 * 01/22/2023 5:46:19 pm (CST)
$725 01/22/2023 5:46:10 pm (CST)
$700 01/22/2023 5:46:10 pm (CST)
$625 01/22/2023 5:46:01 pm (CST)
$600 01/22/2023 5:46:00 pm (CST)
$575 01/22/2023 5:45:44 pm (CST)
$550 01/22/2023 5:45:44 pm (CST)
$525 01/22/2023 11:12:29 am (CST)
$500 01/22/2023 11:12:29 am (CST)
$490 01/22/2023 11:12:25 am (CST)
$480 01/22/2023 11:12:25 am (CST)
$470 01/22/2023 11:12:20 am (CST)
$460 01/22/2023 11:12:20 am (CST)
$450 01/22/2023 11:10:37 am (CST)
$440 01/22/2023 11:10:37 am (CST)
$430 01/22/2023 11:10:32 am (CST)
$420 01/22/2023 11:10:32 am (CST)
$410 01/22/2023 11:10:26 am (CST)
$400 01/22/2023 11:10:26 am (CST)
$390 01/22/2023 11:10:20 am (CST)
$380 01/22/2023 11:10:20 am (CST)
$370 01/22/2023 11:10:13 am (CST)
$360 01/22/2023 11:10:13 am (CST)
$350 01/22/2023 11:09:23 am (CST)
$340 01/22/2023 11:09:23 am (CST)
$330 01/22/2023 11:09:17 am (CST)
$320 01/22/2023 11:09:17 am (CST)
$310 01/22/2023 1:46:55 am (CST)
$300 01/22/2023 1:46:55 am (CST)
$230 01/21/2023 2:34:01 pm (CST)
$220 01/21/2023 2:34:01 pm (CST)
$210 01/21/2023 8:23:57 am (CST)
$200 01/21/2023 8:23:57 am (CST)
$111 01/21/2023 7:43:33 am (CST)
$101 01/21/2023 7:43:33 am (CST)
$90 01/20/2023 11:13:47 pm (CST)
$80 01/20/2023 11:13:47 pm (CST)
$70 01/20/2023 10:03:29 pm (CST)
$60 01/20/2023 7:56:04 pm (CST)
$50 01/20/2023 7:55:59 pm (CST)
$45 01/20/2023 7:55:59 pm (CST)
$40 01/20/2023 7:55:55 pm (CST)
$35 01/20/2023 7:55:55 pm (CST)
$30 01/20/2023 7:55:50 pm (CST)
$25 01/20/2023 7:55:50 pm (CST)
$20 01/20/2023 7:53:47 pm (CST)
$15 01/20/2023 7:53:47 pm (CST)
$10 01/20/2023 7:40:45 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.