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Mimetite

$650.00

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A classic, richly crystallized dense aggregate of the Campylite variety of Mimetite from the world-famous Dry Gill mine in the Caldbeck Fells, Cumbria. Undoubtedly old, this piece comes from the Philadelphia Academy of Sciences Collection (no. 24172) and is accompanied by an old hand written card label relating to Dr. T.B. Wilson (Thomas Bellerby Wilson, 1807-1865) who was a well-known collector of 'Cumberland' minerals, probably directly from the famous dealer Bryce McMurdo Wright. Unfortunately, the label does not correspond perfectly with the specimen and does not bear a number to cross reference it to. Upon it, it describes "Arsenio Phost of Lead [which is Mimetite] on Cupreous Calamine [which was an early misidentification of Plumbogummite] Cumberland". There is clearly no Plumbogummite on this specimen and so either it was an error on the part of Wilson (which is not improbable), or it related to a Roughton Gill specimen rather than this Dry Gill piece. To the specimen itself, it is clearly a very rich Mimetite and presents a wonderful dispersion in colour, from sulphur-yellow through orange-brown and into bright burnt-orange. Small sections of white Quartz veining cut through the Mimetite and sooty black manganese oxides (most likely Coronadite) are seen inbetween some of the Mimetite crystals which is classic Dry Gill. Ex Dr Stephen Crook Collection, this is a really good-sized historic 'Campylite'.