A significant and beautifully balanced Tourmaline specimens from old finds in the famous Malkhan region of Russia, that produced the famous jewels of the tsars. Known since at least the 1600s, this region produced gem Tourmaline of a deep vibrant cranberry to magenta red color known then as "siverite" to contrast it to the pale colors of tourmaline from Elba in Italy -- Elbaite, as it was known. Several large modern era mining projects were performed for specimen recovery, once in the early 1990s and again around 2008-2019 (as well documented in the Mineralogical Record magazine in an issue devoted to this history). This specimen has obvious aesthetics and a remarkable balance such that the crystal is not too big nor too small for the matrix that surrounds it (a mix of blue and white feldspar). Most of these pockets and pieces are found collapsed, since they formed over 200 million years ago. For this reason, repairs and restorations within reason, are certainly accepted in large tourmalines. This piece has two exceptionally clean repairs laterally; and minor restoration of a few small areas of damage, performed professionally with UV-visible epoxy that is otherwise completely invisible to the naked eye. From the previous owner, Gene Meieran “This Russian tourmaline crystal was purchased around 1995 from well-known dealer, Mike Bergmann (of Galena, Illinois). This specimen long predates the more recent find of similar looking crystals and has been in my collection for about 30 years.” Dr. Gene Meieran helped build Intel's scale-up of processes and materials science from its founding and later became Intel's second Fellow, retiring in 2009. He has been a Judge of Intel Science Competition, former chairman of the board of numerous museums, and served in many other roles in science and academia. He is also one of the most well-known mineral collectors in the world, having been active in the field for over 60 years. This specimen comes with a custom milled lucite base f

Ex Gene Meieran collection