LOT Old Heritage Auctions  /  2008 January Signature Natural History #5000  / 

48229

Large Cubic Pyrite Crystal

Currency:USD Category:Collectibles / Rocks, Fossils & Minerals Start Price:9,750.00 USD Estimated At:12,000.00 - 15,000.00 USD
Large Cubic Pyrite Crystal
<B>LARGE CUBIC PYRITE CRYSTAL</B></I><BR> <I>Ambasaguas, Muro de Aguas, La Rioja, Spain </B></I><BR>If, in the world of sophisticated collectors and curators, one asks "What are the finest pyrite specimens in the World?" The answer will surely include the Spanish examples. If one further asks; "What are the finest cubic ones?", then there can be but one answer. For perfection of form and brilliance of luster, no locality has consistently produced like Ambasaguas. This shining cube is typical in that it is a 'floater', meaning that it has no point of attachment to mar the simple symmetry of its form. It is quite atypical in being one of the largest from this locality. The upper face of the crystal displays a common feature for this material: a 'twin' crystal. Twins are separate crystals that have a geometrically ordered relationship to each other. This allows them to grow while interpenetrating each other, sharing the same crystal lattice. Crystallographers commonly refer to them as 'penetration twins'. This shiny, brass-colored crystal cube measures an enormous 4 x 3 ½ x 4 inches. The discrepancy in dimensions is due to natural variation in the growth rate along different crystal axes. It is from the collection of Eric Asselborn of Dijon, France.<BR><BR><b>Shipping:</b> Requires 3rd Party Shipping (<a target="_blank" href="http://www.heritageauctions.com/common/shipping.php">view shipping information</a>)
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