Malachite pseudomorphs after Cuprite on Azurite (rare from Arizona) (ex Kay Robertson Collection)

Item Description

At first glance, I immediately thought this piece was from the classic French locality at Chessy. The iconic combination of Malachite pseudomorphs after Cuprite sitting on Azurite is one of the great old European associations. As it turns out, the label on the base of the box states that the piece is from Globe, Arizona(!) - as does Kay's meticulous handwritten notes from the day she bought it decades ago (in with a file of many minerals she bought at the time from Mineralogical Research Company), and is certainly the first of its kind that I've seen. A pair of very small (about 2 mm), sharp, octahedral crystals of Malachite repalcing Cuprite are sitting on the display face of a beautiful rich midnight blue Azurite "rosette". There is a bit of iron / Limonite staining on the piece, which I feel gives it an antique quality, and adds a bit of color contrast. There is one small contact on the top right corner, but overall the piece is in fine shape. If you collect thumbnails, secondary ore minerals, Arizona minerals or simply unique and interesting specimens, do NOT pass this one up, because I don't think we're likely to see another like it anytime soon. Ex Kay Robertson Collection (#9019). Kay was a prominent California collector, who specialized in European classics. She nearly lived 100 years from April 1920 - March 2020. See the article in the March-April, 2007 Mineralogical Record ( https://www.mineralogicalrecor... ), and the 50+ page article in the German Magazine "Mineralien Welt" November-December 2017.