Ilvaite (classic material)

Item Description

A good representative specimen of these elusive and fine quality Ilvaites, from what is most likely the top locality in the United States for the species. This small cabinet sized specimen host rather sharp and lustrous prismatic, jet-black crystals of Ilvaite measuring up to 4.3 cm on Quartz matrix from this old classic locality. The crystals feature attractive striations along the prims with classic wedge-shaped terminations. The largest crystal is in good condition, with a little roughness along one edge, but please note that some of the secondary crystals are either lightly damaged or broken. The piece dates back probably 50-70 years. These are not easy to find on the market now, and this is what I would call an above average example of the material.
Formerly in the collection of Joe Cilen, and originally from Dr. David Ellis.
Ex George Loud Collection No. 6817; 417 ID.1. George (born August 16, 1942) is a well-known mineral collector from Washington, DC and South Carolina respectively, and was a patent lawyer by trade for over 50 years. He assembled one of the great mineral collections in the U.S., comprising worldwide specimens, and in later years he sold the worldwide specimens to focus on minerals of the United States, specifically locality suites with an emphasis on amazing representation of species while still maintaining fine quality. The specimens remarkably range from micros to all the way up to large cabinets in size. We recently acquired most of his impressive 9000+ piece 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 specimens for their collections.
See: https://mineralogicalrecord.com/biographies_labels/george-loud for more information