MANGANOAN CALCITE. ...

Description

MANGANOAN CALCITE
2nd Sovietskii Mine, Dal'negorsk, Primorskiy Kray, Far-Eastern Region, Russia
The Calcites of Dal'negorsk are justly famous for both size and their perfection of form. This beautiful example lives up to that reputation on both counts. The main Calcite crystal is a huge tabular hexagon some 6 inches across. The color is an intriguing mix of pale pink interior hue showing through "windows" in a very light tan exterior that defies description. Luster is a "satin" one due to the myriad of microscopic, parallel faces that make up the surfaces of the larger faces. Luster is decidedly not a matte type, but something quite subtly different. Smaller subsidiary crystals are distributed sparsely over the metallic gray Galena matrix with an occasional brassy Chalcopyrite crystal. The specimen glows a nice pink under UV as would be expected given its Manganoan character. It measures 8 inches wide by 6 ¼ inches high by 5 inches deep and is in excellent condition.
Provenance: Robert Nowakowski collection with his accession number "RN 258"

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