Tremolite ("Grammatite")

A classic alpine specimen of tremolite from the famous Pizzo Campolungo, Ticino, Switzerland, the type locality for the species. Delicate, silky gray-white acicular crystals form numerous radiating sprays and fan-shaped aggregates, creating an attractive very sculptural miniature with excellent lustre and no matrix. The fine crystal habit displayed here is characteristic of the renowned Campolungo occurrence, which has long produced some of the world's finest crystallized tremolite specimens.

This old-time specimen was originally labeled as "Grammatite," an obsolete name historically applied to tremolite, particularly for classic Alpine material. Well-crystallized examples from this iconic locality have long been prized by collectors for both their aesthetics and their historical significance in mineralogy.