Name: Rhodochrosite on Manganite
Brand: The Arkenstone
Price: 2250 USD
Availability: InStock

Rhodochrosite on Manganite

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A very rich specimen from old finds at this famous mine in Wisconsin, now long closed. Rising out of a matrix of lustrous, black massive ore, is a superb group of interlocked, pink, rhombs which have united to form several, aesthetic rosettes of rhodochrosite. The largest cluster is more than 1.5 cm across. The contrast of colors adds a lot to the aesthetics of this specimen. This is among the best-crystallized examples of this classic old material that I have seen for sale. Most specimens from the Montreal Mine are simply botryoidal and not as interesting. In sum a VERY RARE, very showy, very fine US locality specimen! We were told that these were collected from dumps in the 1960s-70s, although it could also be from the older, working era of the mine via a museum collection. First production at Montreal Mine occurred in 1886 with production years to at least 1950, except for 1921. The mine was predominantly an open pit operation until 1886, and at the height of mining, it employed over 400 workers. Sourced from Stretch Young back in the 90s, and sold to Geiger right away.