 | "A gemmy and lustrous, 1.5 cm, indigo-blue benitoite crystal nicely perched on matrix from the famous and now-closed Dallas Gem Mine. A beautiful and showy piece. Ex Charlie Freed Collection
Benitoite is a somewhat obscure, but wonderful gemstone mineral that was only discovered at the beginning of this century. It has a sapphire blue color and was first thought to be a variety of sapphire. But x-ray studies showed that the crystal structure was unlike any mineral previously discovered. It is one of only a few minerals to crystallize in the bar 6 m 2 class called the ditrigonal-dipyramidal symmetry class. While this class is techically hexagonal, it produces trigonal (triangular) looking crystals. Additionally benitoite is also a fluorescent mineral. Nearly all specimens of benitoite will fluoresce a beautiful pale blue color under UV light." Location: Dallas Gem Mine, San Benito Co., California Size: 3.8 x 2.6 x 1.8 cm. Weight: 1.0 lbs. Quantity Available: 1 Price: $265.00 |