While fluorine means to the average person toothpaste that's good for your teeth the truth is that this element has a lethal bite. The gas is so reactive that its atoms will form near unbreakable atoms with just about any other element. In fact, fluorine holds the record for most difficult element to separate asides, arguably, any of the rare earths. The scientist who finally managed the feat won the Nobel prize for his efforts and was lauded by the awards panel for having tamed the "savage beast."

Fluorine's savagery extends to glass itself, among the most inert of everyday objects, and is a property which is exploited so as to etch it commercially in the form of one of the scariest acids available: hydrofluoric acid. Glass workers have very strict regulations for the use of this acid to prevent spills which have been known to cause horrific accidents.

So how do we have here a little of the beast then, encased in a perfectly clear glass ampule? Well, luckily fluorine reacts with calcium to form a transparent mineral called fluorite. Usually sold as pretty, purplish diamond-shaped stones in rock shops, fluorite is clear in the absence of impurities and a thin coating in glass tubing is enough to trap the gas from further misbehaving. To this helium is also added to help prevent unwelcome reactions inside the ampule.

And there you have it. Real fluorine gas. One of the most challenging elements to purify and the most challenging to display.

Embedded in crystal clear pure Lucite acrylic measuring 50mm on all sides. Cast and hand polished in the USA.