The polymetallic ore bodies of Dal’negorsk were first mined long ago, as far back as the 1890s. It was not until after the Soviet Union fell in the 1990s, however, that the extraordinary diversity and quality of specimens from this deposit became known in the West.  Fine specimens of Quartz have come from Dal’negorsk in a variety of shapes and colors: smoky, amethyst, milky, and even celadon‑green crystals colored by Hedenbergite are found in elite collections around the world. It is the orange specimens of Quartz from this deposit that are most distinctive, and in fact unique in the mineral collecting world.  

They were found at the Second Sovietskiy Mine In 1996. It was a spectacular one‑time discovery that quickly sold out, because of its beauty and rarity. The quartz gets its remarkable color from inclusions of iron oxides.  

In this specimen, the inclusions are more concentrated at the bases of the long slender prisms. The tips of many of the crystals gradually transition to a pale orange or even white, translucent to transparent, giving the piece a lovely complexity with its bicolor appearance.