14k Gold Psilomelane Modern Space Age Sculptural Earrings. Designer

For sale is a pair of designer 14k yellow gold and black psilomelane earrings.  These one-of-a-kind, beautifully crafted earrings are a wearable work of art. Each earring features a triangle of black psilomelane, a rare gemstone with a natural "woodgrain" pattern.  Each inky black gemstone has an intricate pattern of undulating whorls, like a human fingerprint.  Each triangular gemstone is edged with gold bars on two sides.  The two gold bars have different thicknesses, and each gold bar tapers to a point at one end.  The angles created by the psilomelane and the gold bars have a sculptural, geometrical quality.  The earrings are dramatic, elegant and stylish.  Uniquely elegant earrings for a uniquely elegant individual!  

Psilomelane is an umbrella name for manganese oxides. The name was chosen in 1758 and comes from the Greek for "smooth" (psilos) and "black" (melas – like melanin gives a dark pigment). Psilomelane looks like a black, almost metal, slice of wood. Gem-quality psilomelane, often called crown of silver psilomelane or silver crown psilomelane, is polished so you can see silvery "wood grain" or "tree rings" on a jet-black background.  The name comes from the Silver Crown Mine that it is found in, in Chihuahua, Mexico, which has been open rarely in the last 100 years, closing due to multiple cave-ins. While there was much mining in the 1950s and some in the early 2000s, it is still a rare find on the lapidary market.

The item shows normal wear for a pre-owned piece (light scratches, dings, dents and scuff marks.)   

Jeannie