Topaz

specimen number:
2063698

location:
Conway, Carroll Co., New Hampshire, USA

description:

Colorless glassy gem sharply terminated crystal of topaz. Slight micro-damage present as seen. Complete all around. Good thumbnail for the species and locality.

Located within the White Mountains of Carroll County, New Hampshire, Conway sits on the igneous rock formations of the White Mountain Batholith, which was created by intrusive volcanic activity during the Jurassic period. The region became famous among specimen collectors after fine gem-quality topaz was discovered in miarolitic cavities and miarolitic pegmatites within the Conway Granite, particularly at sites like Moat Mountain. These topaz crystals formed as late-stage fluorine-rich hydrothermal fluids cooled inside underground gas pockets, allowing distinct, sharp, highly lustrous clear to champagne-colored prisms to grow alongside smoky quartz and feldspar. While commercial mining was never established, generations of amateur field collectors, mineralogists, and rockhounds have visited the granite exposures around Conway to dig through weathered pockets and scree slopes for these prized New England minerals.

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