Vivianite

Item Description

Tomokoni is one of the great modern Vivianite producing localities in Bolivia. It has given us some of the sharpest and most lustrous crystals of the species from any mine in a country known for its Vivianite crystals. These pieces had the good fortune of not forming near any sulfides, which often in Bolivian mines will deteriorate and release sulfuric gas and / or acid that causes Vivianite to become dull, dark and often rounded or etched. The pieces from Tomokoni show no signs of this alteration, and this piece is a great example. Several very sharp, lustrous, gemmy, rich emerald green colored "sword"-shaped crystals of Vivianite measuring up to 2.0 cm long are sitting on altered Sandstone matrix. What's interesting is that this piece was mined approximately 15 years ago (circa 2003), and the crystals are still notably lustrous and gemmy, which is saying something as many Vivianites will turn black shortly after they come out of the ground. This one looks virtually the same as the day it was mined. It should be noted that well over 75% of the specimens from this find have had SERIOUS damage problems, but this one is a very good condition compared to a lot of the pieces I've seen.