Ferberite (twin) with Marcasite

Tasna Mine, Atocha-Quechisla District, Nor Chichas Province, Potosí Department, Bolivia
Miniature, 3.7 x 3.4 x 2.8 cm
Start Time: 06/10/2021 8:00:00 pm (CDT)
End Time: 06/17/2021 6:50:00 pm (CDT)
Auction Closed
Winning Bid: $92

Item Description

Here is a wonderful miniature specimen of Ferberite from the classic locality at Tasna. This species was sometimes previously referred to as "Wolframite", which was supposed to be an intermediary species between Ferberite and Hubnerite, but has since been discredited. This piece features a classic, "butterfly" twinned crystal of Ferberite showing twinning along the a (100) face. The overall quality of the twin is very good for Tasna, with some sharp faces (some are pretty lustrous), and the classic jet-black color. The piece is associated with a thin coating of tiny spherical groups of metallic golden Marcasite. Twinned crystals from Bolivia have becoming increasingly difficult to obtain in recent years as the price of Tungsten ore has driven the miners to throw all the Ferberite into the crusher, causing thousands of specimens to be lost forever. These twins are definitely the most highly sought after crystal habit from this locality, and are unlike the specimens from well known localities such as Panasqueira, Portugal and Yaogangxian, China, which are just single blades. You don't see many pieces like this one from Tasna, so if you're in the market for a twinned Ferberite, don't miss out as these are few and far between. Priced at $950 in the inventory.

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Bidding History

Bid Amount Bid Time
$92 06/17/2021 6:44:00 pm (CDT)
$82 06/17/2021 6:44:00 pm (CDT)
$71 06/17/2021 6:42:15 pm (CDT)
$61 06/17/2021 6:42:15 pm (CDT)
$51 06/17/2021 6:38:40 pm (CDT)
$45 06/17/2021 6:38:40 pm (CDT)
$42 06/17/2021 6:24:24 pm (CDT)
$37 06/17/2021 6:24:24 pm (CDT)
$32 06/17/2021 5:48:06 pm (CDT)
$27 06/17/2021 10:50:21 am (CDT)
$22 06/17/2021 10:50:00 am (CDT)
$21 06/17/2021 10:50:00 am (CDT)
$10 06/14/2021 10:27:39 am (CDT)