The Sword of Heroes

crownedrose:

Tanzanite specimen on sale for $42,500
Block D, Merelani Mines, Lelatema Mts, Arusha Region, Tanzania.
Photo above shows specimen backlit. Other photos are here and here.

(from their description) This crystal came out in January of 2011, from a new deep level of the mine that features crystals of absolutely incredible lustre combined with one of the most intense natural blue colours you will ever see in a tanzanite. Tanzanite in natural unheated form should be trichroic, blue and purple on the a and b axes, and showing red to violet color when looked at with light along the long, or c-axis. Often, natural tanzanite shows more intense purple color saturation than blue (rotated 90 degrees around the crystal, when you look at the crystal while it is backlit). Here, the color saturation on the blue is “through the roof.” The overall appearance of the crystal is that it has the top color of a heat-treated gemstone of tanzanite, and yet it is not treated for enhancement. The red, third, color is strong even just in room light, let alone when lit from underneath in the dark. As well, the brilliant surface lustre is top percentile, like wet glass. Sometimes you get great lustrous crystals that are “sleepy” inside; but this piece has a premium and sparkling internal brilliance to its gemmy interior, much of which is totally transparent. At 69 grams, this is a sizeable crystal for the quality, and it just barely is too big to be a competition miniature size. The gem rough value alone of this important crystal is substantial, though it is worth more as a specimen. Joe Budd photos.

If this was in my collection, I think my life would be made! And for 42,500 US dollars, it’s only 69 grams. That’s practically 616 US dollars per gram!