Spessartine Garnet

Rich cranberry and damson-plum Spessartine Garnets set in a matrix of lead-grey Galena really needs no introduction as from North Mine at Broken Hill in Australia.  This quite unique combination of Garnets set in a metal sulphide, is iconic to the Broken Hill mining district of New South Wales and never ceases to delight, be this the novice collector or seasoned connoisseur!  Individual Spessartine Garnets, typically measuring 1.5 x 1.5 cm, form a densely packed cluster over an area of roughly 5.5 x 4.0 cm, all embedded in the Galena matrix.  The Garnet crystals vary from transparent to translucent and all have mainly flat, mirror like reflective faces, but with the odd face three-dimensionally patterned by surface growth structures.  A great Broken Hill Spessartine Garnet in Galena, with a little brassy granular Pyrite in its base.