Detailed information
Species
Fluorite
Dimensions
88 x 80 x 86
mm
Weight
882 g
Locality
Muzo Mine Muzo Municipality Boyacá Department, Colombia
Condition
No recorded repairs
Muzo mine in Boyacá Department, Colombia is the world's leading producer of gem crystals of Beryl var. Emerald but great display specimens are few and far between. The Emerald crystals are usually associated with Calcite, or sometimes Pyrite, but who knew that the mine also produced unusual Fluorite crystals? Well it does, but they are rarely seen for sale. This really distinctive Fluorite specimen shows the classic green zonation seen in Muzo mine specimens, but this is not apparently caused by inclusions of Emerald, but by the trace element Yttrium. The crystal is a large, cabinet-sized corner of an individual cubic crystal, the edges of which are about 5 cm in length. The corner faces are in good condition with just minor chipping and they show a mixture of rough, microscopically crystallized surfaces, and smoother, with some stepped surfaces. None of the faces are especially gemmy, but internally the crystal is translucent with the most prominent feature being the zonation in colour from colourless/white with a pale emerald green tip. Other wispy emerald green inclusions are present, but it is the main corner where this really stands out. This is an extremely rare example of Fluorite from this important mine, and is ex Arvid Pasto, author of "Collector's Guide to Fluorite".