Detailed information
Species
Fluorite, Quartz
Dimensions
126 x 148 x 50
mm
Weight
993 g
Locality
Berbes Mining District Ribadesella, Asturias Spain
Condition
No recorded repairs
With its intense purple colour and intergrown stepped translucent cubic crystals, there is something quite distinctive about Fluorite from the Berbes Mining District in Asturias, northern Spain. This larger cabinet-sized piece features a bed of crystals exceptionally to 3.9 cm on edge and with a partial covering of small (3 to 8 mm) colourless bipyramidal Quartz crystals. The Fluorite crystals are not glassy, but possess a slightly greasy lustre, but with their great translucency their colour looks really vibrant and there is also some internal colour zonation to be seen. With directional lighting focused on this piece, its colour really does excel. Notably too, under magnification the Fluorite crystals present slight bevelled edges, a feature well-known from Asturias, and the complexity of its stepped crystal growth is fascinating to observe. The back of the specimen consists of a core of Quartz and Calcite over which the Fluorite has grown, initially colourless to white and then shifting into its lovely purple colour. Although the Quartz coating distracts a little from the quality of the Fluorite crystals, there is no obvious damage to be seen across the display surface and this is a really great sized Berbes Fluorite for display.