There are no very rare minerals on this specimen, but the catapleiite is very beautiful under a scope, and the very sharp, lustrous rutile crystals are also very attractive. As a minor bonus, there are also a few PSMs, after “burbankite family” (likely petersenite-(Ce)). They were not analyzed, but typically this type consists of relatively insoluble REE fluorocarbonates such as parisite-(Ce) or bastnäsite-(Ce), rather than the more common – and easily soluble - synchysite-(Ce). (See the last photo.) Other minerals on the specimen are siderite, white powdery dawsonite, and tiny analcime.
The first pair of photos shows the largest and nicest catapleiite rosette on the specimen. It is ca 1 cm in diameter.
The second pair of photos (FOV 2.4 x 3.4 mm) shows smaller, very thin, transparent catapleiite crystals sprinkled with lustrous rutile.
Note: To me, the rutile looks more like brookite, but according to the MSH rarity tables published by Horváth et al (Min Rec 21. p. 350; Lapis 25, No. 7/8 , p. 58), brookite has not been found in the pegmatites here, and other experts whom I consulted agree that the “brookite-looking” stuff in pegmatites is rutile. (I do know of one exception.) Strangely, mixed in with the rutile are a very few tabular bi-pyramids typical of anatase at MSH. One of these is shown in the next photo (FOV 1.0 x 1.4 mm) along with a couple of the rutile crystals. The longest edge on the anatase (top) is only 0.45 mm. This is an extreme close-up and at that high magnification my scope doesn’t really have sufficient resolution, hence the photo isn’t very sharp. But I think it is clear enough to show that the top crystal looks like typical MSH anatase. It is partly embedded in powdery white dawsonite. Could the other crystals be anatase as well? I find it difficult to see how these crystals could be tetragonal. But then again, rutile is tetragonal too. Maybe the label should read “Rutile and/or Anatase”, but I can’t post that way. Morphology isn’t my strong point!
The next photo (FOV 4.2 x 6.7 mm) shows some other thin, transparent catapleiite crystals (to 2.0 mm) along with some very small siderite rhombs. There are much larger siderite crystals on the “back” of the specimen.(See the last photo.)
The next pair of photos (FOV 6.4 x 4.15 mm) shows numerous rutile crystals on an albite “protuberance”. Very pretty under a scope. There is much similar rutile on the specimen, also more small catapleiite crystals.
The next-to-last photo is a full view of the “front” of the specimen. The last photo shows the back of the specimen, which has the largest siderite crystals. At the bottom right of this photo are the blue-gray PSMs after “burbankite family”. The yellowish blobs to the right are partly hollow cross-sections of similar, broken, PSMs. The PSMs are ca 5 mm long.
Single item shipping weight (no case) is 4.0 oz (112 g). For shipments outside the USA, up to a total weight < 8 oz (225g), this can be combined with other items from this or other auctions for the same postage.
Within the USA, postage for total weights up to 13 oz ranges from $4.25 to $6.50 (including packing etc) regardless of destination. Above 13 oz, I will use “own box” Priority Mail. The rate, including packing, varies by destination from $7.25 to $9.50.
