This Specimen has been sold.
2.6" Smoky Herkimer Diamond - The Ace of Diamonds Mine, New York
This is a beautiful smoky "Herkimer Diamond" collected from The Ace of Diamonds Mine in Herkimer County, New York. The termination is in excellent condition and smoky coloration can be seen along the edges of the crystal. This structure of the quartz is often referred to as "skeletal quartz".
Herkimer diamonds are not actual diamonds, but rather double terminated quartz crystals found in and around Herkimer County, NY. The diamond in the name is from not only their exceptional clarity, but also from the natural facets they display when found. Only crystals with these qualities found in Herkimer County, New York can be called "Herkimer Diamonds". Similar double terminated quartz crystals have also been found in abundance in Tibet and Afghanistan, but these are not true Herkimer Diamonds.
The geologic history of these crystals began 495 million years ago in a shallow sea. Waxy organic material along with quartz sand and pyrite was encased in rock made of dolomite and calcite. As sediment buried the rock and temperatures rose, crystals grew very slowly, resulting in quartz crystals of exceptional clarity. Inclusions can be found in these crystals that provide clues to the origins of the Herkimer diamonds: solids, liquids (salt water or petroleum), gases (most often carbon dioxide), two- and three-phase inclusions, and negative (uniaxial) crystals.
The geologic history of these crystals began 495 million years ago in a shallow sea. Waxy organic material along with quartz sand and pyrite was encased in rock made of dolomite and calcite. As sediment buried the rock and temperatures rose, crystals grew very slowly, resulting in quartz crystals of exceptional clarity. Inclusions can be found in these crystals that provide clues to the origins of the Herkimer diamonds: solids, liquids (salt water or petroleum), gases (most often carbon dioxide), two- and three-phase inclusions, and negative (uniaxial) crystals.
SPECIES
Quartz var. Smoky
LOCATION
The Ace of Diamonds Mine, Middleville, Herkimer County, New York
SIZE
2.6 x 2.45"
CATEGORY
SUB CATEGORY
ITEM
#291465