Hornblende

specimen number:
2133020

location:
Naeskild, Arendal, Norway

description:

A grouping of semi lustrous black hornblende crystals without matrix. Nice old time classic for the species, the specimen comes with a previous antique label as shown at the end of the video. At one time this was part of the collection of a Sir Warington Wilkinson Smyth and was sold by well-known American dealer Lazard Cahn.

Sir Warington Wilkinson Smyth (1817 to 1890) was a British mining engineer, mineralogist, and mineral collector who played an important role in the development of mining science during the 19th century. Educated at Cambridge, he later became Professor of Mining and Mineralogy at the Royal School of Mines in London and served as Inspector of Mines for the British government. Smyth traveled widely to study important mining districts and collected mineral specimens for scientific research and teaching. He published several influential books on mining and metallurgy, and his work helped improve the understanding of mineral deposits, mining methods, and mine safety during the Victorian era.

Lazard Cahn (1865 to 1940) was an American mineral dealer and collector based in New York who became one of the most important mineral specimen dealers in the United States during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He specialized in obtaining high quality specimens from classic American mining districts and supplying them to museums, universities, and private collectors. Cahn also acquired and dispersed several important mineral collections, helping place many notable specimens into major institutional collections. Labels from Lazard Cahn are still recognized by collectors today and are valued as part of a specimens documented history and provenance.

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