Amethyst Sceptre (Specimen #100245)

Mineral(s): Quartz var. Amethyst Sceptre 

Location: Chibuku Mine, Cherdzi District, Masvingo, Zimbabwe  

Size: 4.9 x 2.5 x 2.0 cm 

Description:  A beautiful amethyst sceptre with a ‘sidecar’ crystal collected several years ago under previous mine owners who focused on quality specimens and professional collecting. This colour-zoned amethyst sceptre has outstanding transparency and lustre. The sceptre is a beautiful purple with a dark purple zoning near the tip and hints of smokey quartz in zones. A truly unique specimen, sharp crystal edges and highly lustrous. There are small, barely noticeable micro-nicks on the crystal tip and a bruise at the base of the sidecar crystal. A beautiful sceptre specimen from a former mining period.   

The Chibuktu Mine has been the source of amethyst and smoky quartz specimens for decades, mined by the indigenous peoples of the area. Until new locality owners restarted specimen recovery post-covid, previous sceptre specimens were collected by hand from surface showings and were moderately to heavily damaged. This sceptre crystals and others in this lot were mined by drilling and blasting in hard rock with professional extraction methods to reduce or eliminate crystal damage. This sceptre is one of the best of the 2022-2023 specimen lot and is truly exceptional.