Kosnarite (rare) (ex Rich Kosnar Collection)

Item Description

Kosnarite is very rare potassium zirconium phosphate which was named after Richard Kosnar in 1993. The type locality for this material is Mt. Mica, Maine, but the crystals at that find barely approached 1 mm in diameter. In the early 2000s, Brazilian mineral dealer Luiz Menezes made a discovery of what are the finest Kosnarite crystals in existence with crystals up to 4 mm (which is a quantum leap in size) !! This thumbnail sized specimen hosts approx 1 mm sharp, lustrous, pale yellow color, pseudo-cubic (trigonal) crystals on brownish colored groups of Muscovite Mica. A few very small gemmy olive green Tourmaline prisms can be seen under magnification. If you look closely, you'll see a small truncated face on each "cube" of Kosnarite on this specimen, which is actually a pinacoid or a "c" face as these crystals are trigonal and not isometric as they might appear. Even though the crystals are small, this nearly as good as Kosnarite gets from any locality. For the size and rarity of the specimen, it will more than likely end up being a great bargain for one of you lucky bidders. This piece is from Rich Kosnar's personal collection, acquired directly from Luiz Menezes shortly after it was found.