DALLAS, TX.- Dan Kennedy was a beloved collector of minerals, revered for his love of the natural world and his genuine affection for those who shared his interest as much as for the specimens that made up his remarkable collection. He did not pursue lots just to fill up a display case; instead, he sought out the largest and finest specimens — more than 200 of which of which will be made available to collectors everywhere when they are offered at Heritage in The Dan Kennedy Collection of Fine Minerals Part 1 Signature® Auction March 8 on HA.com.

Kennedy was more than just an eager hunter for the best specimens the natural world had to offer. He was a board member of the Rice Museum of Rocks and Minerals in Hillsboro, Oregon, who built and fostered relationships throughout the collecting community. He curated world-class minerals displays in his home as a testament to his appreciation for the works of art he found throughout the natural world.

“This is an exceptional collection that was put together over decades by one of the absolute giants in the world of mineral collecting,” says Nic Valenzuela, Director of Fine Minerals at Heritage Auctions. “So many have enormous aesthetic appeal, and offer such a wide range of treasures for the most serious of collectors.”

From a mine that is considered to be among the most important and influential in all of mineral collecting history, this Tourmaline with Lepidolite from the Cruzeiro mine in Minas Gerais, Brazil is a standout, even among the world-class examples from Cruzeiro. A single massive crystal protrudes from the matrix and commands attention as the focal point, and is accented by ancillary shorter crystals underneath it that are just as colorful and lustrous. This specimen is dramatic in both configuration and in its stunning raspberry pink hue, which allows it to glow in the light. The matrix itself is made up entirely of purple lepidolite, which has a remarkable metallic sheen.

Nuristan, Afghanistan, is known for producing some of the best Kunzite specimens in the world, and that includes the beauty thick, gemmy Spodumene var. Kunzite from Nuristan, Afghanistan that is being offered that is being offered in this auction. There are three distinct sections of the crystal that run parallel to one another, and the underside has two small cavities that are centered perfectly on each of the parallel faces and lined with Quartz crystals. With excellent color and clarity for a specimen of this size, it appears with a purple or lavender hue, not unlike amethyst, but when viewed under shortwave ultraviolet light, it fluoresces a beautiful salmon color.

The more the merrier! A Schorl and Apatite on Muscovite from the Shigar Valley in Gilgit-Baltistan, Pakistan is a large and impressive specimen that features a remarkable combination of multiple minerals and is dominated by massive, superb books (or parallel stacks) of Muscovite, reaching an immense 5.4 centimeters across, and dotted with sharp associations of Schorl and Apatite. It features grey, olive and green Muscovite crystals, each of which is so compact that the non-stepped sides (along the A and B axis) are almost completely smooth to the touch. Most of the Schorl crystals terminate very nicely, and there are two sizable crystals of Apatite. In visible light, the crystals have a transparent peachy color, but when viewed under ultraviolet light, they will brightly fluoresce orange-yellow.

The most popular and coveted among all elements, gold is more valuable and rare in its natural, crystalline form, meaning a Gold nugget from Serra do Caldeirão claims, Pontes e Lacerda, Mato Grosso, Brazil that is in play in this auction should be a popular treasure among collectors. Gold nuggets are exceedingly rare — even moreso than diamonds — and to have even a small crystalline example from Mato Grosso is a holy grail for many collectors. But the lucky bidder who acquires this specimen will have hit the jackpot: This relatively massive yet incredibly refined specimen weighs in at 178 grams, and it formed in an aesthetically appealing bouquet shape that is entirely made up of sharp, defined, hoppered crystals. Spinel law twinning can be seen on the back as well. Of the many Gold specimens that appeared in the Kennedy collection, this one is among the best.

Momin Akhada is one of the holy grails for Fluorapophyllite, producing these iconic and highly desirable, bright-green “disco balls” that often are accompanied by brilliant Stilbite matrices. This aesthetic Fluorapophyllite on Stilbite from Momin Akhada in Maharashtra, India is nothing short of exceptional, presenting a single perfectly formed, rounded cluster of Fluorapophyllite (5.7 centimeters in diameter) at the center of a wide-reaching Stilbite plate. Most of the rich green color in the Fluorapophyllite “disco ball” is contained to the center of the cluster while the cluster’s sharper exterior is completely glassy and clear.

A specimen Fluorite from the Annabel Lee Mine in Hardin County, Illinois is breathtaking, in part because of its assorted range of blues and purples that absolutely thrive when backlit, and in part because it is in remarkable condition for its size (its longest side measures 6.69 inches, or 17 centimeters). This perfectly-formed Fluorite cube is aesthetically presented on a pedestal of three sizable Fluorite crystals — each completely covered in hundreds of small, very well-defined stepped growths that give the crystal faces a geometric, almost mosaic topography.

Stand out from the crowd! While so many other Quartz specimens display a single color, almost all of the dazzling Quartz points covering this hefty Ajoite in Quartz, from the Messina Mine in Limpopo, South Africa boast classic, vivid teal inclusions of Ajoite — a very rare copper aluminosilicate mineral. Most, if not all, of the Ajoite inclusions are consolidated to the terminations and outlined by other darker inclusions, giving the Quartz sharper and more interesting phantoms.

For many minerals collectors, a Rhodochrosite from the N’Chwaning I Mine has become something of a Holy Grail, thanks in part to the scarcity caused by the fact that the original find was discovered nearly 40 years ago. This Rhodochrosite from the N'Chwaning I Mine in Northern Cape, South Africa can be classified only as world-class, thanks in part to the size (it measures 6.3 inches, or 16 centimeters in length) and the vibrant, deep red color. This gorgeous specimen, with sharp scalenohedral “dogtooth” crystals, is a sizeable treasure from a mine that normally produces miniature and small cabinet specimens.

The intense ocean-blue color in this Fluorite from the La Viesca Mine in Siero, Asturias, Spain is extremely beautiful, and unusual for a locality that more often produces darker and more purple Fluorite crystals, and often in smaller sizes. Thin, intense zones of dark blue around the front-facing edges also are visible from the side, and a few of the cubes also have small dark zones in the centers. This example is one of the approximately 400 that came from the Las Monjas pocket, or “Geoda de Las Monjas,” a find from May 2010 that produced some of the most exceptional examples ever discovered in the La Viesca Mine.

Among the top offerings in the auction is a Red Quartz from the Drâa-Tafilalet Region, Morocco. This is a huge and highly displayable cabinet specimen of large and sharply-terminated Quartz crystals, deposited across the front side of an amorphous, siliceous matrix and covered in a thin layer of microcrystalline-to-botryoidal Hematite and a couple distinct swaths of what is likely limonite. The shape and color have even inspired comparisons to the Darth Maul character from Star Wars.