Updated 3d ago

Mottramite

$850.00

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Peculiar and distinctive, this hollow boxwork of thin veinlets of finely crystallized khaki-green Mottramite is an oddity known only from the famous Tsumeb mine but even there it was very rare. This specimen, which comes from the generations-old Weyand collection in Tsumeb is particularly impressive for its size and dramatic openings. Mottramite is a very rare lead copper vanadate species but at Tsumeb mine it occurred in several different forms, some of which are the world's best. This piece represents an apparent cast of Mottramite after an unknown mineral, or minerals, leaving large open voids. Cabinet-sized, the boxwork of thin 'sheets' of murky to khaki-green Mottramite crystals interlock, with large hollow open spaces, making for an impressive display. This open texture is more commonly seen with Smithsonite in limestone deposits and may well represent a metasomatic replacement of Mottramite after dolomitized limestone resulting in the spectacular change in volume.