Cerussite, Hydrocerussite

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This is a really stark, dramatic cerussite specimen that looks much like bone, or the baleen teeth of a plankton-skimming whale if you have ever seen them in a museum, than like a natural crystal of a lead species. The crystals are very finely reticulated, and sharply symmetrical. They have a powder-white color and powdery texture that is due to a surface alteration to the related species hydrocerussite. However, there are a few small dings here and there which reveal bright, vitreous cerussite underneath, so this is a coating or a partial and not a full replacement. As a bonus, there are sharp, dark smithsonite crystals on the thin matrix plate, in association. Ex. Harold Urish Collection.