Rare Verdite 'Buddstone' Angular Standing Freeform - 155mm, 930g

Locality - Barbeton District, Mpumalanga, South Africa
Size – 155 x 66 x 63mm
Weight – 930g

This verdite standing freeform features rich, deep emerald green colour in swirling patterns throughout with flecks of ochre yellow-brown. It has been artistically shaped to a dramatic, bold angular form, polished to a high shine and stands proudly as an attractive natural decor piece. This exceptional quality piece was from material mined in the famous Barbeton district in the early 1980's, now very rare and difficult to find in such good colour, so makes for a prized collectors piece.

Verdite, also known as 'buddstone' and 'the green stone of Africa', is the name given to a dark, emerald green and brown variety of fuchsite found only in Southern Africa. It is one of the most ancient gemstones known, with Barbeton material dating back as far as 3.5 billion years old. Verdite is highly prized as a carving material for making traditional African sculptures and carvings known as 'shona sculptures', and with a mohs hardness of 7-9, is a difficult stone to work with, used only by very skilled sculptors.