The Big Kahuna II Zone

The Big Kahuna II Zone

Discovered down-dip from the Big Kahuna Zone, this zone was hit in December of 2010 and produced wonderful deep-purple kunzite. The zone also contained deep cranberry-red tourmalines, many on an albite-lepidolite matrix with the lepidolite exhibiting a rich purple color and fine granular crystal structure.

This fine modified rectangular step cut kunzite has an unusual feature: when rocked back and forth, a twin plane is visible (faintly in the photo) in the center, perpendicular to the stone's length. California kunzite crystals are usually fairly flat blades and larger stones are generally cut with the long direction parallel or slightly oblique to the twin plane. At 50.94 carats and nearly 2.5 cm long, this stone required a rather thick piece of rough to achieve this effect. Private collection. Photo © 2011 Mark Mauthner

Elbaite with lepidolite and albite (cleavelandite); main xl 7.2 cm long. Big Kahuna II zone, Baker Boulevard, Oceanview Mine, Pala District, San Diego County, California, USA. Brent Lockhart collection. Photo © 2011 Mark Mauthner.

Pucherite, Tourmaline, Albite, Lepidolite; specimen 9 x 7 x 6.3 cm. Big Kahuna II zone, Oceanview Mine, Pala District, San Diego County, California, USA. Jeff Hapeman collection. Photo © 2012 Mark Mauthner.

The "Big Kahuna" kunzite crystal--the largest find to date from the Oceanview Mine and perhaps the largest extant US-origin kunzite crystal. This crystal measures 28 x 15.6 x 2 cm and weighs 2.2kg! Found in the Big Kahuna II zone, Baker Boulevard level, Oceanview Mine, Pala District, San Diego County, California, USA. Oceanview Mines, LLC. specimen. Photo © 2011 Mark Mauthner.

Tourmaline, Albite, Lepidolite Quartz (smoky quartz); 19 cm across. This "cauliflower head" of albite has overgrown a large tourmaline crystal; prodruding from the albite are several translucent to gemmy smoky quartz and a number of color zoned (cranberry red overall) tourmaline crystals. The tourmaline crystals have black (schorl?) cores and purplish-red tips and rinds (elbaite); the largest, central crystal broke off and regrew as a deep pink cap during pegmatite emplacement. Some of the smoky quartz is zoned as well, with darker cores and a paler outer layer. Big Kahuna II zone, Oceanview Mine, Pala District, San Diego County, California, USA. Private Collection. Photo © 2012 Mark Mauthner.