Description

This specimen (5.4 cm tall) features uvite tourmaline crystals to 1 cm in association with magnesite crystals. The uvite crystals are sharp, lustrous, glassy and translucent. They are in excellent condition – no damage. This specimen also hosts many very fine magnesite crystals, mostly on the far side of the specimen from the uvites, but nicely visible if displayed with the uvite-end of the specimen foward, as in the first photoraph (this is how I would display this one, myself).

The uvite crystal colour and pleochroism are somewhat tricky to describe. The uvites on this piece have a predominantly dark purplish hue –  it is not bright or vivid deep purple. As one views the crystals closely from different angles, subtle dark green hues (typical of Brumado uvites) are discernable from certain directions. The greenish hues are most visible through the prism faces (also detected in the termination faces when viewed from the side), meanwhile the purple hues are most dominant when looking down through the terminations.

Beautiful crystals of very unusual uvite.

Browse More Uvites and other Specimens from this Brazil Update (click here)