KOLWEZITE
Specimen kol-1
$ 75.00Dims: 2.3" x 2.2" x 1.9" (5.8 x 5.6 x 4.8 cm)
Wt: 5.26 oz. (149.1 g)
Kisenge Mine, Zaire
A small crust and several loose clusters of Kolwezite rest on the host rock of this African specimen. The clusters are made up of sprays of acicular, needlelike crystals that are in generally good condition and do not exceed 3 mm in length. Some of these clusters also seem to have banded together to form 2 flat platelets that extend upwards from the sphaerocobaltite bed on which they rest. These platelets have a suspiciously hexagonal-looking shape. All of the formations that the Kolwezite takes seem to be green-colored but have a dirty pale-brown coloration that covers them. The sphaerocobaltite bed consists of dozens of small, pale pink scalenohedral crystals that are mostly covered, but show a bright, vitreous luster, transparence, and excellent clarity. They are quite small, though, not exceeding 4 mm in length. This bed rests on a base rock that appears to be a mixture of calcite, quartz, more sphaerocobaltite, and some decayed chrysocolla.