Tourmaline, Smoky Quartz & Cleavelandite (old) Bill Larson Coll.

Item Description

Aesthetic, sculptural and deceptive old-time tourmaline combination from the renowned Himalaya Mine. Two tourmalines are beautifully set amidst translucent smoky quartz crystals with frosted faces and an impressive contrasting field of glassy parallel-growth cleavelandite blades. The lustrous, striated trigonal tourmalines are 6.4 x 3.3 x 3.3 cm and 5.4 x 2.4 x 2.4 cm and have matte-lustre black terminations. The deceptive tourmalines look like schorls - BUT backlighting reveals that both prisms have layered zones of gemmy/tranlucent rich olive-green color. Essentially pristine. You barely notice, that the small smoky on the front of the large tourmaline has been reattached. Certainly acceptable in the context of pegmatite species. This very fine old-time combination was collected in the 1950s to 1970s, when Ralph Potter owned the mine. Pala Properties (Bill Larson) did not acquire the mine until 1977. See the fine articles on the Himalaya in the 1977 Mineralogical Record, Vol 8, No. 6 and 2002 Mineralogical Record Vol. 33, No. 5 issues. Ex Bill Larson San Diego County Pegmatite Collection and long on display at his Pala International shop in Fallbrook. An outstanding and classic old Himalaya tourmaline combination with artistic form. It displays well without aid.