Hemimorphite

Unknown Owner

Hemimorphite from the Friedensville Mine in Upper Saucon Township, Lehigh County, Pennsylvania occurs in the oxidized zones of zinc deposits that were mined extensively during the 19th and early 20th centuries. The district worked replacement type ore bodies hosted in Cambrian and Ordovician limestone and dolomite, producing zinc minerals such as sphalerite and smithsonite as primary ores. Hemimorphite formed as a secondary zinc silicate during weathering of the original sulfide ores and often appears as white to bluish botryoidal crusts or delicate crystal groups. Specimens from the Friedensville district are of interest to collectors because they represent classic mineralization from one of Pennsylvanias historic zinc mining areas. This example is richly crystallized across the top of a brecciated matrix and in good condition with slight micro-chipping present.