Description
Science and beauty are rarely in conflict. Here they converge. Realgar’s scarlet-orange crystals on yellow orpiment creates a composition that Renaissance painters literally ground up for pigment — ‘King’s Yellow’ and ‘Realgar Red.’ Both are arsenic sulfides, so these specimens are handled with care and not displayed in sunlight. Orpiment converts to arsenolite in UV; the colors fade. Keep them dark.
This specimen originates from Jiepaiyu Mine, Hunan, China, one of the world’s most significant localities for this type of material. Collectors and scientists have drawn from this region for generations, and for good reason: the combination of geological conditions here produces specimens of exceptional quality and clarity.
Every specimen is unique. Photographs approximate the visual experience, but the real thing — its weight, its luster under a raking light, the way it catches the corner of your eye — can only be experienced directly.
