.82" Double-Terminated, Pink-Magenta Rubellite Tourmaline - Russia

This is a beautiful, gem quality, .82" long rubellite tourmaline that was collected from the Malkhan pegmatite field of Zabaykalsky Krai, Russia. It bears a gorgeous pink-magenta coloration throughout the entire crystal and has a pristine termination on each end. This tourmaline formed in association with mica, small portions of which can be seen scattered around the crystal.

It's mounted to an acrylic display base with mineral tack.

Elbaite is a form of tourmaline and is perhaps the most multicolored mineral. It has been discovered in virtually every color of the spectrum and has dramatically increased in popularity since the 1990s. While specimens are commonly faceted into gemstones, most high quality crystals are left as is, or are cut and sold as cross-sectional slices. Elbaite forms as short, stubby, and/or elongated prismatic crystals, often with striations that run along their length. Aggregates of elbaite can occur as botryoidal, columnar, radiating crystals, and in compact masses.

Elbaite has a variety of names (classic and modern) depending on the colors it presents, including achroite (colorless variety), blue cap tourmaline, chrome tourmaline (green variety caused by chromium impurities), fluor-elbaite, indicolite (blue variety), Moor's head tourmaline, mushroom tourmaline, Paraiba tourmaline, rubellite (pink-red variety), siberite (purple variety), verdelite (green variety), and watermelon tourmaline (green exterior with red interior).

The chemical formula of elbaite is Na(Li,Al)3Al6(BO3)3Si6O18(OH)4

Rubellite is a pink-red variety of elbaite, a member of the tourmaline group. Elbaite is a form of tourmaline that is perhaps the most multicolored mineral. It has been discovered in virtually every color of the spectrum and has dramatically increased in popularity since the 1990s. While specimens are commonly faceted into gemstones, most high quality crystals are left as is, or are cut and sold as cross-sectional slices. Elbaite forms as short, stubby, and/or elongated prismatic crystals, often with lengthwise striations. Elbaite aggregations can occur as botryoidal, columnar, radiating crystals and in compact masses.

Elbaite has a wide variety of names, both classic and modern, depending on the colors it presents. They include achroite, a colorless variety; blue cap tourmaline; chrome tourmaline, a green variety caused by chromium impurities; fluor-elbaite; indicolite, a blue variety; Moor's head tourmaline; mushroom tourmaline; Paraiba tourmaline; rubellite, a pink-red variety; siberite, a purple variety; verdelite, a green variety; and watermelon tourmaline, a unique variety with a green exterior and pink to red interior.

The chemical formula of elbaite is Na(Li,Al)3Al6(BO3)3Si6O18(OH)4.

FOR SALE
$115
DETAILS
SPECIES
Tourmaline var. Rubellite & Mica
LOCATION
Malkhan Pegmatite Field, Krasnyi Chikoy, Krasnochikoysky District, Russia
SIZE
.82" long crystal
CATEGORY
SUB CATEGORY
ITEM
#206859