China Under $100

A beautiful combination specimen of light green fluorite with calcite scalenohedrons.  Very stereotypically Chinese material from Hunan, I liked this one because it was relatively clean and the crystals were nearly complete on all sides, save a tiny contact on the back. 

A very good plumbogummite specimen from recent finds I the Gongcheng area.  This one has better color than most, and retains the clear hexagonal shape of the pyromorphite crystals that the plumbogummite is replacing.  There is still a little bit of pyromorphite remaining, this adds a beautiful degree of contrast between its green and the blue of the plumbogummite. 

A very pretty calcite form Daye, this piece has a complete lightly colored crystal sitting nicely on a matrix covered with smaller crystals. Complete all around.

A nice specimen of fluorite from Fujian Province These were found several years ago, and have cubic crystals with an interesting surface texture.  The crystals themselves have an interesting, slightly splotchy purple and blue color.

A nice example of hairy cyanotrichite from Guizhou. Years ago the only place you could really find this mineral from was the Grand Reef Mine at the bottom of the Grand Canyon, but thanks to these finds in China, the species has become more accessible. 

A great babingtonite specimen from what is probably the world’s best occurrence of the species. This mine is best known for its prehnite/quartz combinations, but many years ago they also discovered these large babingonite crystals.  This rare calcium, iron bearing silicate is also known primarily from New England and India, but in my opinion these Chinese pieces are the best.

A nice plumbogummite specimen from recent finds in the Gongcheng area.  This one has numerous small, sharp hexagonal prisms that have completely pseudomorphed to plumbogummite. This localit produced many different habits of plumbogummite, for whatever reason it seems that the smaller crystals retained the sharpest form.  This is a good example of that material. 

Along with the more famous pyromorphite and the plumbogummite of the last several years, the lead deposits near Yangshuo have also produced cerussite. Most is very thin and ugly, nearly unsellable and difficult to ship—but occasionally they do find decent specimens. This update has two habits—this is somewhat older, I am not sure what causes the green staining, but the display face is covered with small, elongated yellow crystals. 

Along with the more famous pyromorphite and the plumbogummiteof the last several years, the lead deposits near Yangshuo have also produced cerussite. Most is very thin and ugly, nearly unsellable and difficult to ship—but occasionally they do find decent specimens. This update has two habits—this one is something of a “snowflake,” with a slight reddish orange color. 

A spiky cluster of calcite crystals from Daye, this one is not perfect (some missing points) but the overall shape is quite pleasant.  The crystals have iron oxide inclusions, giving a reddish-brown color. 

A nice example of what has come to be called “QR code” fluorite. These nearly colorless fluorites from Guizhou have a thin, dark purple overgrowth of later generation fluorite—the color tends to concentrate on the edges of surface features and of the crystal itself, giving a QR code appearance. This one is contacted on the back—actually that is what makes this particularly pleasant to look at, as this allows more light to pass through and makes the “QR code” pattern more easily visible. 

A pretty little example of lustrous calcite from the Tonglushan Mine, in the Wuhan suburb of Daye. This one has the nice, grading reddish-orange color that this discovery was notable for. Excellent luster!

A nice example of fluorite on quartz from Huanggang.  This one has a deep blue octahedron clinging to the side of a white quartz crystal. Interestingly, like most white quartz crystals from this locality, the outermost layer is white while the core (visible from the bottom) is more transparent.  Whatever the reason, the white outer layer gives a better contrast with the blue fluorite—and the smaller size of the crystal allows a bit more light to pass through and make the color a bit more easy to appreciate. 

A cute little sample of De’An fluorite.  The vast majority of these were large plates (I posted an update of those from the original find a few months ago) but this is the somewhat hard to find small version. Like all of these, the crystals were etched out from under a layer of quartz—a very dangerous process involving hydrofluoric acid. 

Not perfect, but so unusual I wanted to include it. This has a numerous small, nearly colorless fluorite crystals on a plate of calcite—what makes it special however are the very thin purple lines on the edges of the internal phantoms—most of the edges have 2 parallel lines, it gives a very pretty, delicate appearance to the crystals. In some places, the lines overlap giving a more unusual appearance still.  You have to look a bit closely, but when you do, the unique features of this small pocket become more apparent

A nice example of fluorite on quartz from Yaogangxian.  This one has a blue-green fluorite with purple phantoms, sitting near the top of a lustrous quartz crystal. 

A pretty calcite from Daye, just not perfect. This piece has a number of nearly colorless crystals, including a main twin perched near the top) sitting on a matrix of more pinkish orange calcite. 

As I noted, it's not perfect. If this were perfect, it would be 5 times the price. 

A very typical calcite from Daye, this one has a single scalenohedron sitting near the center of its matrix.  The iron oxide inclusions of the calcite contrast nicely with the grayish green material covering much of the matrix. Sawn side. 

A nice example of very transparent green fluorite, from finds made approximately 6 years ago at the Xiayang Mine in Fujian Province. Not perfect, but a good reference. 

A nice specimen of fluorite from Fujian Province These were found several years ago, and have cubic crystals with an interesting surface topography.  The crystals themselves have an interesting, slightly splotchy purple and blue color and are scattered on a nicely contrasting, white quartz matrix. Decently sized plate for the price.

A very cute “toenail” sized specimen of transparent smoky quartz on matrix. The crystals are all terminated and positioned quite nicely. 

A very cute thumbnail sized  calcite from Daye, this one has a well-isolated central crystal showing the reddish orange coloration and some of the transparency the this discovery was famous for. 

A nice little combo specimen, featuring a cluster of blady barite crystals, on a bit of fluorite. Not perfect, but still quite pretty. 

A ball-shaped cluster of calcite crystals from Daye.  The calcites have a red color as a result of minute iron oxide inclusions.  Some broken tips (mostly on the back) but still quite cute from the front. 

A nice example of purple creedite from Guizhou. While most creedites from here are brown or colorless, the more sought after purples do exist.  This one has a pair of flattened, radiating clusters on a bit of matrix.

A group of pyrite balls on almost botryoidal, grayish-purple fluorite, from the Fengjiashan Mine, in the Wuhan suburb of Daye.  These were found at least 10 years ago.