NIC VALENZUELA SHARES HIS PICKS FROM THE 200-PLUS LOTS THAT MAKE UP HERITAGE’S MARCH 8 AUCTION OF NATURAL ART
Dan Kennedy was a beloved collector of minerals, revered for his love of the natural world and his affection for those who shared his interest as much as for the specimens that made up his remarkable collection. A board member of the Rice Museum of Rocks and Minerals in Hillsboro, Oregon, who built and fostered relationships throughout the collecting community, Kennedy curated world-class mineral displays in his home as a testament to his appreciation for the works of art he found throughout nature. The California-based collector sought out the largest and finest specimens – more than 200 of which will be available in Heritage’s March 8 The Dan Kennedy Collection of Fine Minerals Part 1 Signature® Auction.
Below, Heritage’s Director of Fine Minerals, Nic Valenzuela, shares some of his favorites from the upcoming auction.
Tourmaline with Lepidolite from the Cruzeiro Mine in Minas Gerais, Brazil
From a mine considered to be among the most important and influential in all of mineral collecting history, this Tourmaline is a standout, even among the world-class examples from Cruzeiro. A single massive crystal protrudes from the matrix and commands attention as the focal point and is accented by ancillary shorter crystals underneath it that are just as colorful and lustrous. This specimen is dramatic in both configuration and in its stunning raspberry pink hue, which allows it to glow in the light. The matrix itself is made up entirely of purple Lepidolite.
Red Quartz from the Drâa-Tafilalet Region, Morocco
This magnificent specimen has drawn comparisons to the Star Wars character Darth Maul. It’s a huge and highly displayable cabinet specimen of large and sharply terminated Quartz crystals, deposited across the front side of an amorphous, siliceous matrix and covered in a thin layer of Hematite and a couple of distinct swaths of what is likely Limonite.
Spodumene var. Kunzite from Nuristan, Afghanistan
Nuristan is known for producing some of the best Kunzite specimens in the world, and that includes this thick, gemmy example. There are three distinct sections of the crystal that run parallel to one another, and the underside has two small cavities that are centered perfectly on each of the parallel faces and lined with Quartz crystals. With excellent color and clarity for a specimen of this size, it appears with a purple or lavender hue, not unlike amethyst, but when viewed under shortwave ultraviolet light, it fluoresces a beautiful salmon color.
Schorl and Apatite on Muscovite from the Shigar Valley in Gilgit-Baltistan, Pakistan
The more the merrier! This large and exquisite specimen features a remarkable combination of multiple minerals, dominated by massive, superb books (or parallel stacks) of Muscovite, reaching an immense 5.4 centimeters across, and dotted with sharp associations of Schorl and Apatite. It features gray, olive and green Muscovite crystals, each of which is so compact that the non-stepped sides (along the A and B axis) are almost completely smooth to the touch. In visible light, the crystals have a transparent peachy color, but when viewed under ultraviolet light, they will brightly fluoresce orange-yellow.
Aragonite from the Ojuela Mine in Durango, Mexico
Most of this specimen is a brilliant white color, but when viewed under ultraviolet light, a large number of the Aragonite will fluoresce a bright lime green along the tips of the crystals. With nicely rounded, coral-like arrangements of Aragonite, it has been in Kennedy’s collection since he purchased it in 1967 from a street dealer in Mapimí.
Fluorapophyllite on Stilbite from Momin Akhada in Maharashtra, India
Momin Akhada is one of the holy grails for Fluorapophyllite, producing these highly desirable bright green “disco balls” that often are accompanied by brilliant Stilbite matrices. This specimen presents a single perfectly formed, rounded cluster of Fluorapophyllite at the center of a wide-reaching Stilbite plate. Most of the rich green color in the Fluorapophyllite disco ball is contained to the center of the cluster while the cluster’s sharper exterior is completely glassy and clear.
Fluorite from the Annabel Lee Mine in Hardin County, Illinois
This specimen is breathtaking, in part because of its assorted range of blues and purples that absolutely thrive when backlit, and in part because it is in remarkable condition for its size (its longest side measures 6.69 inches, or 17 centimeters). This perfectly formed Fluorite cube is aesthetically presented on a pedestal of three sizable Fluorite crystals – each completely covered in hundreds of small, well-defined stepped growths that give the crystal faces a geometric, almost mosaic topography.
Ajoite in Quartz from the Messina Mine in Limpopo, South Africa
While so many other Quartz specimens display a single color, almost all of the dazzling Quartz points covering this hefty specimen boast classic, vivid teal inclusions of Ajoite, a very rare copper aluminosilicate mineral. Most, if not all, of the Ajoite inclusions are consolidated to the terminations and outlined by other darker inclusions, giving the Quartz sharper and more interesting phantoms. The cross section of a single large Quartz crystal is presented at the bottom right of the front view, which has been fully recrystallized.
Rhodochrosite from the N’Chwaning I Mine in Northern Cape, South Africa
For many mineral collectors, a Rhodochrosite from the N’Chwaning I Mine has become something of a holy grail, thanks in part to the scarcity caused by the fact that the original find was discovered nearly 40 years ago. This specimen can be classified as world-class, thanks in part to the size (it measures 6.3 inches, or 16 centimeters in length) and the vibrant, deep red color. This gorgeous specimen, with sharp scalenohedral “dogtooth” crystals, is a sizable treasure from a mine that normally produces miniature and small cabinet specimens.
Fluorite from the La Viesca Mine in Siero, Asturias, Spain
The ocean-blue color in this Spanish Fluorite is unusual for a locality that more often produces darker and more purple Fluorite crystals, and often in smaller sizes. Thin, intense zones of dark blue around the front-facing edges also are visible from the side, and a few of the cubes also have small dark zones in the centers. This example is one of the approximately 400 that came from the Las Monjas pocket, or “Geoda de Las Monjas,” a find from May 2010 that produced some of the most exceptional examples ever discovered in the La Viesca Mine.
Go here to view all 220 lots in The Dan Kennedy Collection of Fine Minerals Part 1 Signature® Auction.