Rhodochrosite from Argentina is generally considered to be the world's finest carving grade material of this beautiful red mineral species. In the 1980s, rich veins of art-grade rhodochrosite were found in a few caverns, quickly mined out for the stone wealth, with the mine eventually destroyed. The best quality veins of carving rock had accents of sparkling, golden pyrite within, although such pieces are very rare today in any size or quality. Modern material from the same region of Argentina does not have a rich pyrite association, and so the presence of this metallic mineral identifies this as old stone. The present box is constructed of very rare matched sets of pyrite-edged rhodochrosite slabs, so precisely aligned with a high attention to craftsmanship. The section joins are almost invisible. It is this combination of the natural gold accents on the natural red stone, that makes the specimen-turned-box so rare.
4½ x 3¼ x 1⅜ in. (11.5 x 8.1 x 3.4 cm.)
583 g.