FMF - Friends of Minerals Forum, discussion and message board

[Carles Millan]

Fluorite

This is not definitely a nice specimen. But from the crystallographic point of view it may be interesting to some people.

Group of pale blue almost transparent tetrakishexahedral {310} fluorite crystals (a tetrakishexahedron is a polyhedron that can be seen as a cube with square pyramids covering each square face, so as a whole it shows 24 triangular faces). Overall size: 65 mm x 40 mm. Longest edge: 10 mm. Weight: 106 g. It was purchased in 1981 from Abel, a Berbes, Asturias villager for €0.30 (about €1.33 adjusted for today's inflation).

San Lino Mine, Caravia Alta, Asturias, Spain (some dealers are currently labeling very similar specimens as if they were coming from Jaimina Mine, Caravia). I hope Jordi Fabre will help make it clearer.

This specimen is no longer in my collection.

Photos copyright © Carles Millan. Reproduction allowed as long as the author's name is cited and the image not modified (if it is not too much to ask...). Creative Commons Attribution Licence - Some Rights Reserved.

My Personal Site

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3178M-fluorite1.jpg
Description:	Fluorite San Lino Mine, Caravia Alta, Asturias, Spain 65 mm x 40 mm. Longest edge: 10 mm
Viewed:	52773 Time(s)

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3178M-fluorite.jpg
Description:	Fluorite San Lino Mine, Caravia Alta, Asturias, Spain 65 mm x 40 mm. Longest edge: 10 mm Inverted position
Viewed:	52792 Time(s)

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3178M-fluorite2.jpg
Description:	Fluorite San Lino Mine, Caravia Alta, Asturias, Spain 65 mm x 40 mm. Longest edge: 10 mm Some crystal edges have been manually enhanced to make the tetrakishexahedral {310} faces easier to spot.
Viewed:	52790 Time(s)

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tetrakis-0.gif
Description:	Fluorite San Lino Mine, Caravia Alta, Asturias, Spain This is a tetrakishexahedron model, probably {210}, since the triangular faces are steeper than the ones in the figured fluorite specimen above
Viewed:	49913 Time(s)

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[Carles Millan]

About the exact locality of the previous post

Jordi Fabre is now very busy getting ready for the next European shows, Munich and Barcelona, which this year are so close scheduled that only four business days separate them, at a distance of more than 1,300 km or about 800 miles. Not an enviable position.

So instead of waiting for him to give a written answer to my help request, I've just made a call to learn his opinion: the tetrakishexahedral fluorite posted above must come from San Lino Mine, which is the deposit that was providing this kind of fluorites in 1981 and that today is closed forever. Later, in the nineties, the nearby Jaimina Mine also gave some tetrakishexahedral fluorites (and so did Emilio Mine, although in less quantity), specimens that can still be seen from time to time in the market, but their square pyramids were lower, the crystals being more cubic shaped.

[James Catmur]

Carles

I have added a more recent Jaimina one to the dicussion about fluorites

https://www.mineral-forum.com/message-board/viewtopic.php?p=7588#7588

I tend to find it easy to see the difference between San Lino and Jaimina, but I could not explain exactly how I knew them apart! Seeing your diagram explains all.

James

[Carles Millan]

[Carles Millan]

View of my Pakistani (and Afghan) specimens (27 pieces).

[Joan Massagué]

Carles,

After having been treated to many of your beautiful specimens, one by one, over the past months, I think that it is a great idea to see views of the full ensemble in these pictures that you posted. Those with the compulsion of seeing each specimen in detail can print out the pictures of the whole shelves and then track your previously posted individual pieces to their location.

Thank you for positively responding to Tobias' request, and congratulations on such a nice collection. I look forward to seeing it again in person in one of my frequent stays in my native Barcelona.

Joan

[Carles Millan]

View of my Indian specimens (mostly zeolites) showcase (9 pieces).

My Personal Site

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India-091009.jpg
Description:	_My Indian specimens (mostly zeolites)
Viewed:	52283 Time(s)

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[Carles Millan]

Here is the display for most of my USA (and Canadian) specimens as they are arranged in a showcase (25 pieces).

[Tobi]

Hi Carles,

thank you for taking this pictures. It is right what Joan says: To see your specimens in an ensemble gives a much better impression of your collection - and it is really impressive. Especially the Afghanistan/Pakistan case and the North America case are pure eye candy. Congratulations to an excellent mineral collection!

Sehr schön :-)

Tobias

[Carles Millan]

Tobias,

Vielen Dank für deine liebe Worte!

[Carles Millan]

Showcase shelf with miscellaneous specimens coming from Morocco, Portugal, Namibia and Malawi, from left to right (26 pieces).

Don't go looking for a magnifying glass yet. A larger photo is displayed at https://carlesmillan.cat/minerals/Misc1-091011.jpg although I cannot guarantee this link will work forever.

[Montanpark]

Carles,
it is a pleasure to see your displays and i would be glad if my showcases would look like yours .. my specimens are also very crowded in the displays and i should rearrange them asap after viewing your photographs ;-) ..

Please keep the pictures coming,

THANKS for sharing,
cheers
Roger

[Carles Millan]

[Jason]

Those pak/afghan specs. are fantastic..thanks for posting carles!!!!

[Carles Millan]