Detailed information
Species
Fluorite
Dimensions
130 x 160 x 87
mm
Weight
1700 g
Locality
Wet Grooves Mine Askrigg, Wensleydale North Yorkshire, England
Condition
No recorded repairs
Sometimes it is impossible to accurately portray a specimen with photographs alone, and I would say that this specimen from Wet Grooves mine is a good case for this. This large cabinet display specimen is a really fine Yorkshire Pennines fluorite specimen and seeing it in person has been a real treat. Comprising a sandy, perhaps sugary limestone core, the rock matrix provides a perfect base for display over which the whole upper surface is made up of a sculptural aggregate of very large, pale amber/cream, glassy, cubic Fluorite crystals. These crystals are mostly over 2 cm on edge, but exceptionally up to 3.5 cm across. The crystals all show inclusions of a sulphide (Chalcopyrite or Pyrite) inside the outer edge and many have a slight internal frosting, but this provides a degree of character to the material. The lustre on the surface of the Fluorite crystals is mostly very good - more glassy towards the crystal edges and more etched towards the centre of the faces. There is some minor damage to the corners/edges of three of the display crystals, but these are not overly obvious because of the pale colour of the Fluorite and the majority of the crystals are pristine. Overall, a really fine Yorkshire Fluorite specimen that will sit well in a display of British Fluorite.