Ferberite

An impressive and attractive twinned Ferberite from Tasna. This species was sometimes previously referred to as "Wolframite", which was supposed to be an intermediary species between Ferberite and Hubnerite, but has since been discredited.

This splendid piece is a sharp, highly lustrous, jet-black twinned crystal of Ferberite (twinned along the a{100} face). For a final aesthetic touch, one can see a sparkling spherical aggregate of Marcasite on the top (or bottom depending upon the angle) of the twin! The piece has a small contact towards one of the corners but, considering that the large majority of Ferbs from Tasna have serious damage problems, this one is in great shape and displays well from a few angles. The luster is better than the majority of the Ferberites from this mine and the piece is complete on both the top and bottom. It is not cleaved, which is impressive as most of the Ferberite twins are broken on one end.

Bolivian Ferberites (especially those from Tasna) are often and sadly underrated/overlooked, but in many instances will surpass other Ferberites from Yaogangxian or Panasqueira for size and quality.

Specimen # BOL711B81