Although oriented toward mineral collectors, some items of interest to gemmologists that appeared in 2014 include tourmaline from Brazil, Tanzania and Nepal; gem-quality wurtzite and colour-change axinite-(Mg) from Merelani, Tanzania; demantoid from Iran;
benitoite from California; and daylight-luminescent hyalite opal from Mexico (as reported in this issue of The Journal).
Soon they began searching further afield, and in 1966 they came across the
Benitoite Gem mine, where they became acquainted with the lessee, Clarence Cole.
Other rarities are a "rainbow" calcite, which has the unique ability to separate and reflect light into its spectral colours, and the world's largest faceted
benitoite gem, a stone the colour of blue sapphire but with the fire and reflective properties of diamond.
A few issues later he offered well-formed
benitoite and neptunite crystals on natrolite for $1 to $2.
Suppose you own a mine in San Benito County, California that produces the best known crystals of
benitoite in the world.
I want to congratulate you on your fine report on the
Benitoite Gem mine (January-February 2008).
Rick Kennedy of Earth's Treasures (www.earthstreas.com) brought to Denver an excellent lot of neptunite from the famous
Benitoite Gem mine, San Benito County, California.
The
Benitoite Gem mine is located in the Coast Range Mountains in San Benito County, north of the town of Coalinga.
Readers of the article in this issue on the history of the
Benitoite Gem mine will note the portion of the story devoted to the 1935 visit to the mine by collecting buddies Ed Swoboda and Pete Bancroft--then high school students.
The
Benitoite Gem mine (also known as the
Benitoite mine, the Dallas Gem mine or simply the Gem mine) has been known for 100 years as the source of a crystallographically unique and aesthetic mineral and gem species,
benitoite.
The
Benitoite Gem mine, one of America's classic mineral localities, was discovered in 1907.
(2) Five fine matrix specimens of
benitoite and neptunite with joaquinite.