Aquamarine Beryl crystal

[MEinWV]

Here is a personal find of mine. Was at a mica mine and dug down to an old blast zone and found this hunk of Beryl crystal in four puzzle pieces. It was split in two with an ancient fracture that was a perfect 90 degree break. I don't know how long the whole crystal was, but more of it remained in the pit wall.

It is a great specimen though for show and tell.

 

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[Rasputin]

Wow, That is awesome! Now go dig more!

 

[txkickergirl]

wow that is a great find

 

[Cappy Z.]

Have you taken the samples to a gemologist or museum? It would be interesting to get an opinion on these unusual specimens.

 

[MEinWV]

Yes, I used to dig with a few geologists and gemologists over the years. There is literally tons of the stuff up in the New England pegmatite zones. In fact, some of the largest Aqua Beryl crystals ever found were three feet or more in diameter and eighteen and more feet in length, embedded in a matrix of Rose Quartz(must have been beautiful to behold). They were discovered around 1929, at the Bumpus Quarry, in the mountains of western Maine. They were admired for a time, by geologists and museums from around the world, but were subsequently removed and sent south by rail to be processed for the strategic metal Berilium. Government stockpiles of Beryl were also used to make the heat tiles on our early space capsules.

HH

 

[Cappy Z.]

Thanks! for the very interesting info MEinWV.

If you have any 'scraps' left how much weight would a chunk weigh?

 

[MEinWV]

Oh, I don't know. I would have to weigh some up and take a pic.

Beryl is in the quartz family, so almost any quartz rocks you find in your yard would give you an idea how much you would get in a pound.

HH

 

[Cappy Z.]

Oh, I don't know. I would have to weigh some up and take a pic.

Beryl is in the quartz family, so almost any quartz rocks you find in your yard would give you an idea how much you would get in a pound.

HH

Would you ever consider selling half that big chunk of Beryl? How much? I have the cash.

 

[MEinWV]

I would rather keep it as a single unit, as it shows both halves of a natural ancient fracture. This is my personal best find of beryl and I don't think I will be selling it anytime soon.

Thanks for the offer though!

HH