Stunning, 7.5" Aquamarine, Tourmaline & Albite Association - Pakistan

Stunning, Aquamarine, Tourmaline & Albite Association - Pakistan #198236

This is an alluring, 7.5" wide white albite (var. cleavelandite), aquamarine, and black tourmaline association. It comes from the Skardu area of Pakistan, a location renown for its stunning mineral associations, with high quality aquamarine being one of the most sought after minerals. This aquamarine crystal has sky-blue coloration, exceptional transparency, and is quite long, measuring in at 3.7 x .68". It is laying across a mountain-like bed of white cleavelandite that is littered in black tourmaline (schorl) crystals. A small, additional aquamarine crystal can be found along one edge of this specimen.

The entire specimen measures 7.5 x 6.6 x 4.1" and sits nicely on a flat surface. There is a natural fracture through the aquamarine crystal, however there is no indication of any repair.

Aquamarine is a blue-green variety of beryl. Oddly enough, it owes its color to iron(II) and iron(III) cations within the crystal lattice, of which iron(II) is responsible for the blue color, while iron(III) is responsible for the yellow color. The color vibrance and hue are dependent on the concentration of these cations, or lack of one or the other. The presence of both cations in the right position within the crystal lattice, can result in a deep blue colored crystal that is known as "maxixe".

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