Dolomite cast with Duftite

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This fine large display specimen from Tsumeb mine features a classic Dolomite cast for which this mine is famed. A thin layer of greyish-white pearlescent Dolomite appears to have coated, or epimorphed, Calcite crystals, creating a cast of their original external form. To add to the attraction, and complexity, the thin layer of Dolomite extends outwards and upwards, creating a somewhat bowl-like form, and having a thin reddish-brown internal layer, suggesting that its composition shifted slightly during growth. Patches of green Duftite - a lead copper arsenate species - add rarity to this piece, forming finely crystallized coatings on both sides, but more extensively on the rear of the specimen. Ex Weyand Collection.