Description
Sferlùn Asbestos Mine, Vallone del Cengiaccio, Lanzada, Laterna Valley /Malenco Valley Valtelllina, Sondrio Province, Lombardy, Italy
Demantoid garnet specimens famously come from Italy with a vibrancy and character unmatched by most other localities. Sferlùn asbestos mine is an absurdly difficult to access locality that requires treading a treacherous and long path to get to. It has been open for a long time for asbestos, but, in 1947 they discovered quite amazing specimens of demantoid and then later came across more in a variety of pockets. Unfortunately after 2000 the productions diminished to nearly nothing, making these progressively rarer and more difficult to find as time separates us from the mines production days. This specimen is an outstanding example from the locale as it has very large, facet-clean crystals which have high gloss luster and outstanding isolation and form. It also features some of the smaller, very deep green crystals which are thought more recently to possibly be another associated species of garnet. They all sit on the classic asbestos matrix which is famously a wonderful contrast to make an elegant and aesthetic specimen fit for the finest collections.
4.50 x 4.00 x 3.00 cm
Ex James Zigras
