Updated 3d ago

Native Bismuth

$1,200.00

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The history of how and when Native Bismuth was discovered is confused, as with many of the earliest mineralogical finds, but there appears to be little doubt that it was in the vicinity of the German town of Schneeberg that it was first noted and probably as early as the 15th or 16th century. This extremely rich, and very dense, fist-sized specimen is from the famous, more modern discovery at Shaft 38, Niederschlema, Bad Schlema, Erzgebirgskreis, Saxony, Germany, that lies just 3 miles from Schneeberg. Shaft 38 was sunk in 1947 and ceased operations in 1973, providing a widow of time when this specimen was found. The shaft was plugged with concrete in 1987, providing an absolute latest date that it could have been collected. The specimen is a mixture of very fine-grained dull grey Safflorite or Nickelskutterudite, with coarser grains of bright silvery to golden metallic Native Bismuth and discrete small terminated Quartz crystals. At 430 g it is a significant example of this really rich-Native Bismuth-bearing ore. Ex Kessler Collection.