Elbaite

specimen number:
8911038

location:
Cruzeiro Mine, Sao Jose da Safira, Minas Gerais, Brazil

description:
A mostly green with a purplish red termination single crystal of elbaite, this glassy and gem throughout. Naturally healed on the base, in very good condition. This weighs 7.44 g.

Located in the Minas Gerais region of Brazil, the Cruzeiro Mine near Sao Jose da Safira is a world-famous pegmatite deposit celebrated for producing exceptional gem-quality tourmaline and other fine minerals. Formed within complex granitic pegmatite dikes that intruded regional metamorphic rocks, the deposit features extensive internal zoning and hydrothermal pockets where rich concentrations of lithium, boron, and other elements crystallized into remarkable crystals. Commercial mining operations, which expanded significantly during the mid-twentieth century, uncovered stunning specimens of multicolored tourmaline, particularly vibrant bicoloring and rubellite varieties, alongside fine quartz and feldspar. Today, the mine remains legendary among international mineral collectors and museums for yielding some of the most aesthetic and pristine tourmaline crystals ever discovered in South America.

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