Goethite on Quartz with Microcline

This is one of those one-off, quirky specimens which makes you smile simply because it is that bit different from the norm. The Lake George Area in Park County, Colorado, is well known for its fine Fluorite, Microcline Feldspar and smoky Quartz, but in this delightful miniature, it is the superbly crystallised Goethite which takes centre stage. Excellent acicular Goethite crystals of typically 1.7 cm tall and up to 2.5 cm, form a densely packed cluster covering one face and a part-prism of smoky Quartz, itself with a partial-coating of pink and cream Microcline Feldspar. The coal-black Goethite crystals are developed as single blades and wheat-sheaf clusters with a bright metallic silky lustre. A charming specimen from the Josef Clemente Collection of southern Germany.