Description
A gorgeous deep red elongated crystal of spessartine, with bright lustre and complex stepped faces. Although many specimens from this famous find appear irregularly shaped, this one is clearly an elongated dodecahedron. It is a floater – it formed freely in the pocket with no attachment to surrounding rock. This piece is from the famous March 2003 pocket at the Navegadora Mine (the single find that produced these) and it is ex. Cal Graeber.
This specimen can look very different in different lighting conditions. I could photograph it all day long! The photographs here are meant to convey the lustre, the incredible detail, the internal colour when well lit from behind, and also the dark appearance in lower light conditions. When looking at this specimen under modest light, it is dark with glints of beautiful red (as shown in the photos with white background). Under display lights, the lustre is superb. Examined with strong light from behind, this crystal is intense red throughout. It is in excellent condition. If you search you can find a couple of small chips, not distracting, hard to see and/or not visible as I would display it.
The Navegadora spessartines present a challenge of balance – the larger ones are dark (and won’t even show this deep internal red with backlighting, only glints), the smallest ones are easily perceived as red, and the key in my view is to find one that has good size while showing the best red colour and retaining the crystal sharpness. This specimen achieves this balance.
A beautiful Brazilian spessartine – great size, form and colour and exquisite sharp details.
