Collection: Vesuvianite from Italy

Bellecombe is a village in Châtillon, Aosta Valley, and a classic European locality for vesuvianite. The mineral takes its name from Mount Vesuvius, where it was first found in Italy, and Bellecombe is among the most representative localities in that tradition.

Its vesuvianite is known for long, tetragonal prisms with square cross-sections, flat terminations, crisp edges, fine lengthwise striations and a strong glassy luster. Colors run from olive green and golden green to brown, and the darkest crystals look almost black until the light catches green or reddish-brown translucency at their edges. Crystals often grow with grossular, diopside, clinochlore and other minerals.