Mn-Calcite (fluorescent) on Bournonite and Quartz

Item Description

OUTSTANDING, very showy association piece from the well-known Pachapaqui mining district in Peru but of a style not seen since the 1980s! The highlight is a fabulous, baby-pink, 6.7 cm scalenohedral Calcite that actually has curved and tapered sides. Add to that gentle ridges that run the length of the Calcite, plus small, secondary crystals that jut outward, and you have a hypnotic and unusual Calcite that looks like a Humpback whale. Included manganese imparts the pink color, and is also responsible for the intense, orange-pink fluorescence. This Manganese-bearing Calcite group sits aesthetically on a layer of black Bournontes, which in turn rests on a plate of Quartz crystals. This mine is well-known for its superb pink manganoan Calcites, and specimens associated with Bournonite are hard to find in such eye-catching specimens. This is certainly from an older discovery, circa 1980s, and has everything going for it in terms of aesthetics. It is so biological and interesting, the more you look at it. The stunning fluorescence is simply a bonus! Hard to value, as these do not turn up on the market very often. From our special collection sale, direct to auction, of choice material from the collection of Richard Rossi, East Coast collector and Mineralogical Record Fellow.