Description & Provenance

Barite is a barium sulfate (BaSO₄) that is identified easily by its heavy weight and high density. It may exhibit a number of crystal habits and form in an array of colors. Collectors love its many variations, from crystals that have formed as blades that are paper-thin or platy tabs that are incredibly thick, they may have glass-like translucence or full opacity. Of its many permutations, one of the most distinctive is the thin, ice-like, blue barite blades of Morocco. Although blue barite has been found in other countries, the famed Moroccan examples were from a one-time-find in 2015 and are easily identified by their vivid, sky blue coloring; sharply-formed, ultra-thin blades; and rosette-like clustering, all in specimens of a size ideal for exhibition. Although their color and habit are characteristic, Moroccan examples can express a great degree of variation between them when it comes to composition, quality, and condition. This specimen is a fine example that embodies all of those traits in an incredibly aesthetic arrangement of crystals. It has the quintessential, sky-blue color for which the find is famed. The specimen has two clusters of sharply-formed barite blades. The elongated blades are laterally connected but fan out slightly, allowing their distinct terminations to be well articulated, giving them the look of a crashing wave or a bursting star. Its wonderful translucency and lustrous sheen heighten these likenesses. The clusters are balanced on each side of their dark, lustrous matrix, creating a nice symmetry. All in all, this specimen is very attractive example of from this one-time find.

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