Polished Congo Salrose Cobaltoan Calcite Freeform - 70mm, 170g

Locality - Democratic Repuplic of Congo
Size – 70 x 67 x 22mm
Weight – 170g

This salrose freeform displays gentle rose pink colouration throughout with inclusions of deep green malachite and flecks of vivid sky blue chrysocolla. It has been shaped to a unique, sculptural form and polished, salrose is rarely seen as freeforms making this crystal a unique and highly collectible piece.

Salrose, also known as cobaltoan calcite, is a vivid pink variety of calcite containing Co2+ that is highly regarded for its attractive colour. The finest specimens come from the Democratic Republic of Congo and Morocco. Calcite is a carbonate mineral and a major component of sedimentary rocks such as limestone as well as the primary mineral in metamorphic marble, and is one of the most abundant minerals on the Earth. It is found in an astonishingly wide variety of formations and colours, though the most common forms are rhombohedral and scalenohedral crystals with most common colours being clear to white in a transparent to opaque appearance. Calcite is often the primary constituent of the shells of many marine organisms such as plankton and bivalves.