Cuprite - Red Dome Mine, Queensland, Australia

Cuprite

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Rich deep red slightly translucent masses of cuprite throughout matrix.The Red Dome Mine, located near Chillagoe in far north Queensland, Australia, was a major open-cut gold and copper producer that operated primarily from 1986 to 1997. Geologically, the deposit is situated within the Paleozoic Chillagoe Formation near the major Palmerville Fault, representing a complex intrusion-related skarn and porphyry system. Mineralization formed through the interaction of Permian-Carboniferous felsic intrusive rocks with carbonate-rich sedimentary sequences, producing extensive garnet and pyroxene skarns that host significant accumulations of gold, copper, and associated base metals.