Natural History - Historic 'Zimbabwe' Emerald in Quartz Specimen

The nodule split open to show the internal cavity filled with enhanced dyed blue crystals. 2.29 kg total, 14.4-15 cm



From a Cambridgeshire, UK, collection.

Comprising: goethite and limonite from Scotland or England, collection number 479; pyrite from Peru, collection number 233; octahedral blue fluorite crystal from Illinois, USA, collection number 475, with an old Gregory, Bottley & Lloyd label; calcite geode half from Brazil, collection number 108; bornite from North Transvaal, South Africa, collection number 192; amethyst from Brazil, collection number 26; fluorite on sphalerite from England, collection number 186; native copper specimen from USA, collection number 153, with an old Gemset of Broadstairs Ltd. label; wolfenite of calcite from Mexico, collection number 485, with an old Gregory, Bottley & Lloyd label. 892 grams total, 3.9-11.6 cm



Acquired on the UK mineral and fossil market, since 1970. From the historic mineral collection of Richard Valentine Cain, London, UK, thence by descent. Each specimen accompanied by an original historic index file card.

A large Charonosaurus sp. hadrosaur egg retaining evidence of the original leathery surface. 3.4 kg, 16 cm



Acquired 1983-1990. Private collection, Hove, UK.

Hadrosaurs were large dinosaurs, growing up to 10 metres in length, belonging to the ‘Duck-Billed’ group of dinosaurs. They are considered the ‘herd animal’ of the Cretaceous, having been found buried together in their thousands. Dinosaur egg fossils are known from approximately two-hundred sites around the word, particularly in Asia. This nest comes from the Xixia Formation, Henan region of China, which produces some of the best preserved eggs in the world. These eggs can yield entire embryos within them, making them an essential tool for understanding the biology of these creatures.