FMF - Friends of Minerals Forum, discussion and message board

[Tobi]

This is an Elbaite Tourmaline from the Urubu Mine in Minas Gerais, Brazil. The crystal is hollow and has a core which is filled with Quartz. Even if the Tourmaline is broken and hollow, the piece is quite nice and impressive because of the contrast between the crystal and the white Quartz matrix. The large crystal has a lenght of 65 mm, overall size of the specimen: 95 x 70 x 60 mm.

[Tobi]

Here's a U.S. classic which i like very much: Calcite from the Sweetwater Mine in Missouri. The large crystal has a lenght of 90 mm, overall size is 95 x 90 x 50 mm.

[Tobi]

The next one is an Apatite in orange Calcite Matrix from Sludyanka (Baikal Lake area, Russia). Crystal size 40 x 25 x 25 mm, overall size 70 x 60 x 50 mm.

Our museum here in Marburg has such a matrix specimen of Apatite from Sludyanka - the largest crystal (good quality for this location and with very intense colour!) is about 150 mm in lenght. Simply incredible!

[Tobi]

Here we have a Smoky Quartz on Cleavelandite from Galilea, Minas Gerais. The collector ho sold it told me that this finds are quite new. I don't know if this is correct ...? The large crystal atop measures 55 x 35 x 30 mm, overall size of the specimen is 100 x 70 x 45 mm.

[Tobi]

A small but very beautiful Topaz specimen from Villa Garcia, Mexico. 10 mm crystal, overall size 33 x 22 x 17 mm.

[Tobi]

This one was a U.S. classic which i was searching for very long: Amazonite from Pikes Peak in Colorado, USA. Very rare to get in Germany, but now i finally got such a specimen :-) The overall size is 95 x 60 x 52 mm, the largest crystal is about 30 x 35 x 20 mm.

[Tobi]

Another German Fluorite from a classic locality: This one's from the Hermine Mine in Wölsendorf, Bavaria. From an older collection, overall size 115 x 70 x 45 mm, longest crystal edge 20 mm.

[Tobi]

This is a green Fluorite from El Hamam, Morocco. What makes this specimen special (i'm sorry that the picture doesn't really show it) is the growth of purple Fluorite crystals inside the green ones. I don't know how to call this form of growth. Phantoms? Two generations? But it looks interesting ... well, nearly EVERY Fluorite in the world looks interesting ;-)

Overall size 85 x 60 x 35 mm, longest edge 23 mm.

[Tobi]

I want to post two of my favourite Calcite specimens. First, here's one from the quarry near Landelies, Belgium. It has nearly transparent, yellow crystals up to 25 mm on white matrix, overall size 140 x 110 x 70 mm. Until i found this one on a mineral show some years ago, i had never heard of the beautiful Calcites from Landelies ... they are really nice :-)

[Tobi]

Nearly the same story is connected with this German Calcite: It's from a quarry near Rammelsbach, Palatinate. I didn't even know that this place existed until i saw this specimen on a mineral show. It has salmon-coloured crystals up to a lenght of 35 mm, overall size 145 x 120 x 85 mm.

[Tobi]

This is a Halite specimen from a potash mine in Neuhof (eastern Hesse, exactly in the middle of Germany). The overall size is 200 x 80 x 60 mm, longest crystal edge is 13 mm.

[Tobi]

An impressive cluster of Pyrite from the Huanzala Mine in Peru. Overall size 160 x 105 x 80 mm, longest crystal edge 50 mm.
I you want strong muscles, take this one for weightlifting ;-)

[Tobi]

This is currently the centerpiece of my display collection and this specimen is connected with a question to those of you how have good knowledge of Madagascar minerals. I only know that it is from the Antananarivo province, but i would like to know the exact locality. I even talked to some fellow collectors here in Germany, but no one was able to tell me the exact locality, where these Milky Quartz specimens are mined in Madagascar.

Has anyone here an idea of where it's exactly from in Antananarivo province in Madagascar?

Overall size 170 x 155 x 100 mm, longest crystals are about 80 mm long.

[Carles Millan]

Hi Tobias!

I know almost nothing about Madagascar minerals. And I own a couple of zircons from this island that for many years I didn't know where they were from, I had no clue about their exact locality.

I was lucky enough, however, to have the chance to ask a great expert about Madagascar minerals, Mr. Laurent Thomas, thanks to the help of Gail Spann and Jordi Fabre, who made a valuable suggestion ( https://www.mineral-forum.com/message-board/viewtopic.php?t=466 ). If you could reach him (although I don't know how) it's very likely that you got an answer to your question.

Good luck!

[parfaitelumiere]

Hi Tobias,your Baryte specimen makes me really think of similar specimens found at Cabrières in Herault in France,I have one similar specimen,with pseudo of limonite after calchopyrite.