Two gorgeous glassy and gemmy crystals of teal green Fluorite from Shigar Valley. The largest crystal is over 3cm in size and transparent enough to see through to the matrix below. Undamaged in pristine condition, the crystals contrast well against the white Albite. Shigar Fluorite are not common and MINDAT shows only 26 examples. This one, in my opinion, is more aesthetic than any of those shown. Ex. Tim Sherburn collection.

Translucent to transparent rhombic Rhodochrosite crystals on needle Quartz. There and densly grouped crystals along the bottom and more isolated crystals in the center and top areas.

Shimmering golden crystals of Siderite and Sphalerite after Calcite from a well known, short lived find in South Africa. There are two double terminated crystals on matrix. The Siderite and Sphalerite formed as epimorphs over the Calcite which later dissolved away. Because they are hollow, most are damaged to varying degrees. This is an execellent example in pristine condition. Ex. Tim Sherburn collection.

Complete, single crystal of Halite that has been pseudomorphed to Calcite. A good sized crystal that is nearly 5cm wide on the diagonal and shows hoppered growth on all sides. Ex. Tim Sherburn collection.

Translucent, colorless to white Chalcedony that has replaced a fossil snail. A fine example with wonderful translucency. I particularly like the smaller fossil snails that are present at the opening and even inside the larger snail. Ex. Tim Sherburn collection. Tim acquired it many years ago from a collection he no longer remembers, but was sure it was from the USA.

Deep blue Lazulite, brown Siderite, and white Apatite crystals from a well known and remote phosphate locality in the Yukon. Approximately 25 years ago I flew to Canada and bought perhaps 500 pieces of this material. I've sold them all except this one, a specimen I had kept in my collection all those years.

Complete highly lustrous single Pyrite crystal from the Merelani Tanzanite mines in Tanzania. This is a high quality, complete crystal showing the complex form these Pyrite crystals are famous for. Ex. Tim Sherburn collection and comes mounted in a Perky box. Tim had access to a large number of these Pyrites as they were imported and was able to select the best.

Unusual, highly lustrous single Pyrite crystal from the Merelani Tanzanite mines in Tanzania. This is an uncommon crystal showing a rounded form with smooth, curving sides rather than sharp crystal edges. Ex. Tim Sherburn collection and comes mounted in a Perky box. Tim had access to a large number of these Pyrites as they were imported and was able to select the best.

Complete highly lustrous single Pyrite crystal from the Merelani Tanzanite mines in Tanzania. This is a high quality, complete crystal (contacted on the bottom) showing the complex form these Pyrite crystals are famous for. The backside is coated by white Calcite. Ex. Tim Sherburn collection and comes mounted in a Perky box. Tim had access to a large number of these Pyrites as they were imported and was able to select the best.

Amazing, complete 'pinwheel' of peach colored Stellerite and a small amount of matrix. This incredible Stellerite is complete all the way around, 360 degrees, with a smaller cluster in the center. Ex. Tim Sherburn collection.

Well formed red Alamandine crystals to 7mm in a dark schist matrix. These are rare, hard to come by specimens from a one time find. Ex. Tim Sherburn collection and comes with an old British Museum label. Tim specialized in UK minerals and he told me these were the only UK garnets he was ever able to buy. A discussion of the find and locality is provided by MINDAT: In 1822, Carne notes: 'About six months ago, a mass of beautiful garnets, of a deep red colour, was found imbedded in the rock [in a footnote: The rock here appears to contain chlorite, as well as hornblende and quartz], not far from low water mark, at the foot of Chycornish Carn, about a quarter of a mile south of Botallack. Some of the crystals are larger than hazel-nuts, and most of them were twenty-four sided. Some specimens of a very superior order were procured, each having from one to two hundred crystals on its face.' There is, however, some debate about the true locality of these specimens, some of which are preserved in the collection of the British Museum of Natural History. Chycornish Carn is an isolated rock in the sea, about 40 yards off Crowns Rock, north-west of the Botallack mine. According to Carne, however, the specimens were recovered from a place located a quarter of a mile in the opposite direction. Whether this is just a simple mistake in the locality description is not known. Comparable specimens were never found again, neither at Chycornish Carn, nor anywhere else in the area around Botallack Mine. On the other hand, Carne's report suggests that the locality was collected out, a fact which still leaves Chycornish Carn as the possible location.For these reasons, the locality is listed with a question mark. The grid reference is that of Chycornish Carn. Alderman (1935) characterised specimens of these garnets in the Carne Collection at the University of Cambridge. He mentioned that (Sir) Arthur Russell succeeded in discovering the original spot where these garnets were obtained, and that all the garnet specimens have been removed, save for traces. Russell indicated the location was near the low water mark on the cliffs close to Zawn a Bal, between the Crowns and Wheal Edward. Analysis of the garnets showed them to be unusually rich in the almandine component with 91.33% almandine, 1.69% spessartine, 2.35% pyrope and 4.63% grossular.

Cluster of 3 perfect and complete Azurite crystals on a bed of velvety Malachite. The largest Azurite is 1.5cm in size. Exquisite miniature Azurite specimen!

Large single Brochantite crystal from the Milpillas Mine. Milpillas Brochantite are considered best of species. This is a good sized example with electric green flashes of color.