One of the VERY FEW Sphalerite specimens that I have seen from the Chicote Grande mine in Bolivia. This mine is actually best known for its astoundingly fine Japan-Law twinned Quartz specimens, which sometimes played host to beautiful jet black Ferberite crystals! Chicote Grande is one of the "forgotten" mines in Bolivia over the last 20 years as very little material has been available. My father had a stake in this mine in late 1970’s / early 1980’s, and was able to acquire some superb and interesting specimens. This piece was only one of two specimens of Sphalerite from Chicote Grande that my father kept for his personal collection. It is an attractive, sharp, very eye-catching crystal group with great form and virtually no damage! The crystals are sitting on a thin layer of tan Siderite for an added touch. If you’re a Sphalerite collector or a Bolivian mineral collector, do not pass up this unique and hard-to-find display specimen. You don’t see these anywhere on the market now. Without a doubt, one of the best Sphalerites that I know of from this tungsten mine in northern Bolivia.
One of the VERY FEW Sphalerite specimens that I have seen from the Chicote Grande mine in Bolivia. This mine is actually best known for its astoundingly fine Japan-Law twinned Quartz specimens, which sometimes played host to beautiful jet black Ferberite crystals! Chicote Grande is one of the "forgotten" mines in Bolivia over the last 20 years as very little material has been available. My father had a stake in this mine in late 1970’s / early 1980’s, and was able to acquire some superb and interesting specimens. This piece was only one of two specimens of Sphalerite from Chicote Grande that my father kept for his personal collection. It is an attractive, sharp, very eye-catching crystal group with great form. The crystals are associated with minor Quartz and Pyrrhotite on the reverse side of the specimen. If you’re a Sphalerite collector or a Bolivian mineral collector, do not pass up this unique and hard-to-find display specimen. You don’t see these anywhere on the market now. Without a doubt, one of the best Sphalerites that I know of from this tungsten mine in northern Bolivia.
Here we have a good quality Boracite specimen from find the 2009 find in Bolivia. While these specimens are not a new find per se, they are newly mined specimens from this well-known locality. Most people are familiar with the "blue" Danburites (included by Magnesioriebeckite) from this locality, but the other staple species found here is Boracite. This piece features several rare, well-formed, sharp, translucent, blue color cubes and cuboctahedral crystals of this hard to find species on matrix. There were very few crystals from the entire find on matrix, and I was very lucky to get as many good pieces as I did. Don’t miss out on a lovely piece of a species that is not often found in attractive specimens.
Here we have a good quality Boracite specimen from find the 2009 find in Bolivia. While these specimens are not a new find per se, they are newly mined specimens from this well-known locality. Most people are familiar with the "blue" Danburites (included by Magnesioriebeckite) from this locality, but the other staple species found here is Boracite. This piece features a few rare, well-formed, translucent, golden peach color crystals of this hard to find species on matrix. There were very few crystals from the entire find on matrix, and I was very lucky to get as many good pieces as I did. Don’t miss out on a lovely piece of a species that is not often found in attractive specimens.
Here we have a good quality Boracite specimen from find the 2009 find in Bolivia. While these specimens are not a new find per se, they are newly mined specimens from this well-known locality. Most people are familiar with the "blue" Danburites (included by Magnesioriebeckite) from this locality, but the other staple species found here is Boracite. This piece features a few rare, translucent, fairly sharp, golden color crystals of this hard to find species on matrix. There were very few crystals from the entire find on matrix, and I was very lucky to get as many good pieces as I did. Don’t miss out on a lovely piece of a species that is not often found in attractive specimens.
Here we have a good quality Boracite specimen from find the 2009 find in Bolivia. While these specimens are not a new find per se, they are newly mined specimens from this well-known locality. Most people are familiar with the "blue" Danburites (included by Magnesioriebeckite) from this locality, but the other staple species found here is Boracite. This piece features a few rare, well-formed, translucent, blue color crystals of this hard to find species on matrix. There were very few crystals from the entire find on matrix, and I was very lucky to get as many good pieces as I did. Don’t miss out on a lovely piece of a species that is not often found in attractive specimens.
Here we have a good quality Boracite specimen from find the 2009 find in Bolivia. While these specimens are not a new find per se, they are newly mined specimens from this well-known locality. Most people are familiar with the "blue" Danburites (included by Magnesioriebeckite) from this locality, but the other staple species found here is Boracite. This piece features a few rare, translucent, pinkish-orange and grey color crystals of this hard to find species on matrix. There were very few crystals from the entire find on matrix, and I was very lucky to get as many good pieces as I did. Don’t miss out on a lovely piece of a species that is not often found in attractive specimens.
Here we have a good quality Boracite specimen from find the 2009 find in Bolivia. While these specimens are not a new find per se, they are newly mined specimens from this well-known locality. Most people are familiar with the "blue" Danburites (included by Magnesioriebeckite) from this locality, but the other staple species found here is Boracite. This piece features a rare, sharp, well-formed, translucent, blue color cubic crystal of this hard to find species on matrix. There were very few crystals from the entire find on matrix, and I was very lucky to get as many good pieces as I did. Don’t miss out on a lovely piece of a species that is not often found in attractive specimens.
Here we have a good quality Boracite specimen from find the 2009 find in Bolivia. While these specimens are not a new find per se, they are newly mined specimens from this well-known locality. Most people are familiar with the "blue" Danburites (included by Magnesioriebeckite) from this locality, but the other staple species found here is Boracite. This piece features a few rare, sharp, well-formed, translucent, blue color cubic crystals of this hard to find species on matrix. There were very few crystals from the entire find on matrix, and I was very lucky to get as many good pieces as I did. Don’t miss out on a lovely piece of a species that is not often found in attractive specimens.
Here we have a good quality Boracite specimen from find the 2009 find in Bolivia. While these specimens are not a new find per se, they are newly mined specimens from this well-known locality. Most people are familiar with the "blue" Danburites (included by Magnesioriebeckite) from this locality, but the other staple species found here is Boracite. This piece features a few rare, sharp, well-formed, translucent, pinkish-orange color crystals of this hard to find species on matrix. There were very few crystals from the entire find on matrix, and I was very lucky to get as many good pieces as I did. Don’t miss out on a lovely piece of a species that is not often found in attractive specimens.
Here we have a good quality Boracite specimen from find the 2009 find in Bolivia. While these specimens are not a new find per se, they are newly mined specimens from this well-known locality. Most people are familiar with the "blue" Danburites (included by Magnesioriebeckite) from this locality, but the other staple species found here is Boracite. This piece features rare, sharp, well-formed, translucent, pinkish-orange, soft yellow and white/grey color crystals of this hard to find species on matrix. There were very few crystals from the entire find on matrix, and I was very lucky to get as many good pieces as I did. Don’t miss out on a lovely piece of a species that is not often found in attractive specimens.
Here we have a good quality Boracite specimen from find the 2009 find in Bolivia. While these specimens are not a new find per se, they are newly mined specimens from this well-known locality. Most people are familiar with the "blue" Danburites (included by Magnesioriebeckite) from this locality, but the other staple species found here is Boracite. This piece features several rare, sharp, well-formed, translucent, blue color cubic crystals of this hard to find species on matrix. There were very few crystals from the entire find on matrix, and I was very lucky to get as many good pieces as I did. Don’t miss out on a lovely piece of a species that is not often found in attractive specimens.
Here we have a good quality Boracite specimen from find the 2009 find in Bolivia. While these specimens are not a new find per se, they are newly mined specimens from this well-known locality. Most people are familiar with the "blue" Danburites (included by Magnesioriebeckite) from this locality, but the other staple species found here is Boracite. This piece features a few rare, well-formed, translucent, golden color crystals of this hard to find species on matrix. There were very few crystals from the entire find on matrix, and I was very lucky to get as many good pieces as I did. Don’t miss out on a lovely piece of a species that is not often found in attractive specimens.
Here we have a good quality Boracite specimen from find the 2009 find in Bolivia. While these specimens are not a new find per se, they are newly mined specimens from this well-known locality. Most people are familiar with the "blue" Danburites (included by Magnesioriebeckite) from this locality, but the other staple species found here is Boracite. This piece features a rare, very sharp, well-formed, translucent, powder-blue color cuboctahedral crystal of this hard to find species on matrix. There were very few crystals from the entire find on matrix, and I was very lucky to get as many good pieces as I did. Don’t miss out on a lovely piece of a species that is not often found in attractive specimens.
Here we have a good quality Boracite specimen from find the 2009 find in Bolivia. While these specimens are not a new find per se, they are newly mined specimens from this well-known locality. Most people are familiar with the "blue" Danburites (included by Magnesioriebeckite) from this locality, but the other staple species found here is Boracite. This piece features a few rare, well-formed, translucent, soft peach yellow and grey color crystals of this hard to find species on matrix. There were very few crystals from the entire find on matrix, and I was very lucky to get as many good pieces as I did. Don’t miss out on a lovely piece of a species that is not often found in attractive specimens.
Here we have a good quality Boracite specimen from find the 2009 find in Bolivia. While these specimens are not a new find per se, they are newly mined specimens from this well-known locality. Most people are familiar with the "blue" Danburites (included by Magnesioriebeckite) from this locality, but the other staple species found here is Boracite. This piece features a rare, very sharp(!), well-formed, translucent, soft blue color cuboctahedral crystal of this hard to find species on matrix. There were very few crystals from the entire find on matrix, and I was very lucky to get as many good pieces as I did. Don’t miss out on a lovely piece of a species that is not often found in attractive specimens.
Here we have a good quality Boracite specimen from find the 2009 find in Bolivia. While these specimens are not a new find per se, they are newly mined specimens from this well-known locality. Most people are familiar with the "blue" Danburites (included by Magnesioriebeckite) from this locality, but the other staple species found here is Boracite. This piece features a fairly large, rare, translucent, pinkish-orange color cuboctahedral crystal of this hard to find species on matrix. There were very few crystals from the entire find on matrix, and I was very lucky to get as many good pieces as I did. Don’t miss out on a lovely piece of a species that is not often found in attractive specimens.
Here we have a good quality Boracite specimen from find the 2009 find in Bolivia. While these specimens are not a new find per se, they are newly mined specimens from this well-known locality. Most people are familiar with the "blue" Danburites (included by Magnesioriebeckite) from this locality, but the other staple species found here is Boracite. This piece features a few rare, sharp, well-formed, translucent, peach-yellow color crystals of this hard to find species on matrix. There were very few crystals from the entire find on matrix, and I was very lucky to get as many good pieces as I did. Don’t miss out on a lovely piece of a species that is not often found in attractive specimens.
Here we have a good quality Boracite specimen from find the 2009 find in Bolivia. While these specimens are not a new find per se, they are newly mined specimens from this well-known locality. Most people are familiar with the "blue" Danburites (included by Magnesioriebeckite) from this locality, but the other staple species found here is Boracite. This piece features a rare, sharp, well-formed, translucent, rich blue color cubic crystal of this hard to find species on matrix. There were very few crystals from the entire find on matrix, and I was very lucky to get as many good pieces as I did. Don’t miss out on a lovely piece of a species that is not often found in attractive specimens.
Here we have a good quality Boracite specimen from find the 2009 find in Bolivia. While these specimens are not a new find per se, they are newly mined specimens from this well-known locality. Most people are familiar with the "blue" Danburites (included by Magnesioriebeckite) from this locality, but the other staple species found here is Boracite. This piece features a few rare, sharp, well-formed, translucent, blue grey color crystals of this hard to find species on matrix. There were very few crystals from the entire find on matrix, and I was very lucky to get as many good pieces as I did. Don’t miss out on a lovely piece of a species that is not often found in attractive specimens.
Here we have a good quality Boracite specimen from find the 2009 find in Bolivia. While these specimens are not a new find per se, they are newly mined specimens from this well-known locality. Most people are familiar with the "blue" Danburites (included by Magnesioriebeckite) from this locality, but the other staple species found here is Boracite. This piece features a few rare, translucent, soft cream-yellow color crystals of this hard to find species on matrix. There were very few crystals from the entire find on matrix, and I was very lucky to get as many good pieces as I did. Don’t miss out on a lovely piece of a species that is not often found in attractive specimens.
Here we have a good quality Boracite specimen from find the 2009 find in Bolivia. While these specimens are not a new find per se, they are newly mined specimens from this well-known locality. Most people are familiar with the "blue" Danburites (included by Magnesioriebeckite) from this locality, but the other staple species found here is Boracite. This piece features a rare, sharp, well-formed, translucent, rich blue color crystal of this hard to find species on matrix. There were very few crystals from the entire find on matrix, and I was very lucky to get as many good pieces as I did. Don’t miss out on a lovely piece of a species that is not often found in attractive specimens.
Here we have a good quality Boracite specimen from find the 2009 find in Bolivia. While these specimens are not a new find per se, they are newly mined specimens from this well-known locality. Most people are familiar with the "blue" Danburites (included by Magnesioriebeckite) from this locality, but the other staple species found here is Boracite. This piece features a rare, sharp, well-formed, translucent, pinkish-orange color crystal of this hard to find species on matrix. There were very few crystals from the entire find on matrix, and I was very lucky to get as many good pieces as I did. Don’t miss out on a lovely piece of a species that is not often found in attractive specimens.
A most unusual Danburite specimen from this famous locality. Typically the Danburites from Chapare show a distinctive blue color that is caused by inclusions of the rare amphibole, Magnesioriebeckite. The main crystal on this specimen has a rarely seen golden-brown color. Along with the translucency and the fact that it’s on matrix, it’s a cool oddity that would make a nice addition to a Bolivian suite, or a collection of unusual minerals.
Metastibnite is a relatively rare antimony sulfide and is dimorphous with Stibnite. I was very proud to obtain a few of these wonderful, unique and interesting Metastibnite specimens from Bolivia, which were collected in the Fall of 2003. Before this discovery, Metastibnite was only known as amorphous reddish "smears" on matrix and was never considered to be a collector’s species, although it has been around for over 100 years. These new specimens redefined the species for quality and size, but the fact that these are crystallized specimens, make them INCREDIBLY desirable for collectors. This fantastic thumbnail specimen features superb, lustrous, bright silver color, botryoidal crystal aggregates creating a very eye-catching and somewhat “stalactitic” specimen. The "spheres" on this specimen are remarkably fine for quality and size. If you're a species collector, or a thumbnail collector, this one is for you. I can’t imagine a better Metastibnite thumbnail exists from this discovery, and I have to believe that this would score high marks in competition. Virtually no damage without magification, save the bottom where it detached from the matrix. There are no more of these specimens, and I have no more to offer for sale, so I suggest if you want this one, do not hesitate.
When it comes to mineral species, people tend to associate Bolivia with Vivianite, Cassiterite and Silver species, but there is a Gold mining operation in the north that has produced some of the finest "phantom" Quartz specimens from any locality I have seen. This specimen consists of dozens of sharp, gemmy, prismatic hexagonal crystals of Quartz (var: Smoky Quartz) that range in color from a very pale smoky color to a rich nearly "morion" black at the base, but the most impressive aspect of these crystals is the fact that they show very attractive, distinct internal "phantoms". The luster is mostly frosted, but most of the crystals are undamaged. The specimens are reminiscent of those from Lincoln County, New Mexico, and are certainly the best of what they are from Bolivia. This piece was mined in 2000, and I have only seen a scattered few of them on the market since that time.
These crystals are one of the most beautiful phosphates in the world. They are highly prized for their rarity and beauty. This remarkably attractive specimen features beautiful lustrous, light green color Paravauxite crystals and tan color Sigloite crystals associated with micro crystallized iron-stained Wavellite needles on matrix. Sigloite forms as an alteration of Paravauxite. This specimen is from the type locality for both species ! Mark Chance Bandy described Paravauxite crystals in his book "Mineralogy of Llallagua, Bolivia". He states that Paravauxite is the most abundant of all the "Vauxites" from this mine, and with that said, you almost never see specimens, especially pieces that are larger than thumbnails available on the market. This piece is a great example of the prismatic, sheaf-like parallel growths that Mr. Bandy described. To find a piece of this size with so many great quality crystals is unheard of these days.
These crystals are one of the most beautiful phosphates in the world. They are highly prized for their rarity and beauty. This specimen features beautiful lustrous, light green color Paravauxite crystals and tan color Sigloite crystals associated with micro crystallized iron-stained Wavellite needles on matrix. Sigloite forms as an alteration of Paravauxite. This specimen is from the type locality for both species ! Mark Chance Bandy described Paravauxite crystals in his book "Mineralogy of Llallagua, Bolivia". He states that Paravauxite is the most abundant of all the "Vauxites" from this mine, and with that said, you almost never see specimens, especially pieces that are larger than thumbnails available on the market. This piece is a great example of the prismatic, sheaf-like parallel growths that Mr. Bandy described.