Group of a parallel growth of very sharp flattened quartz crystals. Very transparent, with an excellent brilliance, transparence and with a visible "faden" growth that crosses it tip to tip.
It comes from a very recent find in the alpine valley of Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne, in France, near Italy and they could be considered between the best faden quartz crystals in Europe.

Group of very sharp flattened parallel growth of quartz crystals. Very transparent, with an excellent brilliance, transparence and with a visible "faden" growth that crosses it tip to tip.
It comes from a very recent find in the alpine valley of Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne, in France, near Italy and they could be considered between the best faden quartz crystals in Europe.

This elegant specimen presents a cube-octahedral fluorite crystal, with well defined faces and curved edges and good size. Color from green to blue, with some zoning. It is very aerial disposed on a white quartz matrix, with pyrite in the back side, and it is accompanied, to increase its aesthetics, by a rich group of calcite crystals, with a curious banded brown tones. An unusual specimen, with an incomparable presence.

Group of lanceolated axinite-(Fe) crystals, with excellent color and brilliance, very sharp and transparent. They are partially covering a matrix of quartz crystals with dark green clinochlore aggregates, also with green epidote. The specimen is much better in hand than in the picture.

Group of lanceolated axinite-(Fe) crystals, with excellent color and brilliance, very sharp and transparent. They are partially covering a matrix and accompanied by aggregates of yellow to white prehnite. The specimen is much better in hand than in the picture. A new find in Perú.

Group of lanceolated axinite-(Fe) crystals, with excellent color and brilliance, very sharp and transparent. They are partially covering a matrix of quartz crystals with dark green clinochlore aggregates, also with yellow prehnite. The specimen is much better in hand than in the picture. A new find in Perú.

Find "different" specimens from Madan is a laborious work but, sometimes, very satisfactory. In this sample we see two galena crystals of cubic habit with slightly rounded edges and faces with rare hopper growth. To add more interest we can observe in vertices octahedron faces. Good luster, metallic gray color and disposed very aerial and aesthetics on a matrix of sphalerite crystals with several twins, polysynthetic growths on faces and excellent brilliance. Also numerous brilliant chalcopyrite crystals. A different specimen from a classic Bulgarian locality.

Group of fluorite crystal showing an elongated cubic prism, beveled on edges, with excellent violet color zoning. Directionally, they are partially covered with a layer of white quartz we wanted to preserve. They are very aerial disposed on a matrix covered by small but brilliant quartz crystals. They were extracted from la "coquera" (vug) called La Negrina (the black one), that appeared between March and April, 2006.

Excellent specimen of fluorite showing well defined cube and octahedron forms, with a good green color and transparence. The disposition is perfect on a feldspar matrix. It is accompanied by several hyaline quartz crystals, many of them doubly terminated and some with probably rutile inclusions. Also with schorl-dravite crystals implanted in the matrix, together with small groups of hexagonal fluorapatite crystals (visible under LW-UV). A superb quality Pakistani specimen for the best fluorite collector display.

A good size and exceptional Belgium calcite specimen on matrix! Transparence and very rich in faces, good honey color. We can observe the complex twinning formed by rhombohedral crystals, visible twin plane. Perfectly disposed on a calcite matrix.
This limestone quarry has provided beautiful calcite twins which have made enjoy during years the crystallography mineral collectors. Currently access is not allowed.

A very interesting cluster of sharp epidote crystals showing a developed striated prism, some doubly terminated. Terminal faces are defined by various pinacoids. The brilliance is excellent and the deep green color, near black in thick crystals, could be perfectly observed when light crosses through them. From a Peruvian locality not well represented in collections.

A very aesthetic and huge size group of calcite crystals showing rhombohedral forms, elongated along the main axis. Good definition, yellow color, due to the iron oxide coating. From a Spanish classic locality.

A very aesthetic group of calcite crystals showing rhombohedral forms, elongated along the main axis. Good definition, yellow color, with greater intensity at the acute forms, due to the iron oxide coating. From a Spanish classic locality.

Druse of very sharp fluorite crystals, with transparence and excellent yellow color. From a classic Spanish mine for the species.

An aesthetic arborescent copper specimen with several defined crystals, with good brilliance an colour. Accompanied by malachite and some quartz. From a lesser-known Zambian copper-cobalt mine. A specimen from past times.

Excellent aquamarine crystal showing a well developed prism and a very interesting termination, not very common for the species. We can see at the top, the sharp faces of the first order dipyramid, with one isolated face (curious!) of a third order dipyramid. Moreover, the apex is truncated by the pinacoid. It has a slight bluish tone, near colorless. Transparence and brilliance are very good. On the faces of the prism some groups of muscovite and albite crystals have grown. It is very vertically disposed on a white matrix of albite with muscovite, with a small another aquamarine. A gem on matrix.

A rich group of well-defined cubic crystals of fluorite showing polysynthetic growth on faces. Violet-purple color is very, very intense, with geometrical zoning in the crystal core. Many of them are interpenetrating, giving the whole a unique aesthetics. From a classic Asturian locality.

A very aesthetic copper specimen formed by laminar to arborescent forms, with rounded crystals and very aerial disposed. The color is natural, withouth chemical treatments, and it shows some luster. It comes from Bolivian mine, near CoroCoro, famous for pseudomorphs of native copper after hexagonal cyclic twins of aragonite, but these laminar shape is uncommon for locality.

Curious specimen of calcite from Moscona. Formed by some crystals, one of them predominant, with complex rhombohedrall faces with echeloned growth. Accompanied by tabular barite crystals and on a yellow fluorite matrix.

The mine N'Chwaning II is well known worldwide for their specimens of olmiite or rhodochrosite, among many other mineral species. But this mine has also provided excellent samples of hydroxyapophyllites which are very different from the Indian specimens or any others. This is one of them, perhaps the best I've never seen.
A group of very aerial interpenetrated apophyllite-(KOH) crystals, very sharp. They show striated and defined pseudocubic prisms with small triangular faces of the tetragonal dipyramid on the dihedral angles. Very brilliant, translucent and with an excellent aesthetics. In addition, it presents isolated crystals on the matrix.

Rich group of sharp isolated octahedral fluorite crystals, from translucent to transparent. They show an interesting apple green color. They are accompanied by small quartz crystals. On a granite matrix. This matrix is classic for modern specimens and comes from low levels of the Berta quarry.

Rich group of sharp octahedral fluorite crystals, from translucent to transparent. They show an interesting apple green color. They are accompanied by small quartz crystals. On a granite matrix. This matrix is classic for modern specimens and comes from low levels of the Berta quarry.

A weakness, I admit. A cube-octahedral complex galena, defined edges, with polysynthetic growths on (111) faces. In one of them we can observe tiny crystals of pyrite and dolomite.
It comes from one of the classic mines of Catalonia: the Règia mine. In this mining area, occasionally, we could find small specimens but usually less defined. An opportunity to get a specimen from a classic Spanish locality.

Excellent and rich group of scalenohedral calcite crystals, with defined faces and edges. Some of them show the tips slightly reddish. They are very brilliant and translucent. Accompanied by shiny aggregates of tabular transparent barite crystals. A very showy specimen from a classic locality.

A huge size and very rich specimen formed by groups of allargentum intergrown with dyscrasite and silver. Defined crystals, very aerial disposed. Good luster, with metallic gray tones, gold (classic for allargentum) and silver. On a calcite matrix. A very elegant and quality sample for this locality and species.