Description

Detailed Description

This is a fantastic specimen, featuring jewel-like, intensely coloured roselite crystals perched on calcite crystals. The roselite crystals are transparent to translucent, with good lustre. The larger rosellites are compound, parallel-growth crystals with many faces. This piece is in excellent condition, no damage (a couple of incomplete calcites at the outer periphery). In my opinion, it displays beautifully in two different orientations – I prefer supporting it to stand as in the first photo.

The contrast and the combination with these sharp calcite crystals is striking and uncommon. This is a killer.

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About These Agoudal Mine Roselites

Important Note about Roselite – Roselite forms a series with wendwilsonite, where the ratio of cobalt to magnesium varies, and the correct identification of a specimen depends upon where along the spectrum that individual specimen lies. These two minerals can only be distinguished from one another on the basis of an analysis that determines the levels of magnesium. As roselite is believed to be the more common of the two, Tomasz Prazkier and I have labeled these specimens roselite – they have not been analyzed.

The Agoudal Mine has been a famous source of many excellent mineral specimens for years. In particular, it has been known for beautiful cobaltoan calcite. The locality has included underground and surface workings. I understand from Tomasz that all workings at the Agoudal Mine have now ceased. This is sad news for mineral collectors, as the Agoudal Mine has produced some of the finest cobaltoan calcites and roselites ever found anywhere.