Baryte with Chalcopyrite

Unknown Owner

The Dreislar mine is situated in central Germany close to Winterberg and from the outside, the ‘black and white’ half-timbered mine building, set against a backdrop of trees, appears more like a quaint English tea room! The mine first began in 1870 extracting lead, zinc and copper but soon closed. However, it was reopened in the mid-1950 to mine Baryte and continued doing so until 2007. The Baryte from here forms superb specimens associated with crystallised Chalcopyrite and this beautiful miniature is a striking example. Snow white Baryte blades have developed in parallel, between which their faces are richly strewn with brassy golden Chalcopyrite crystals, some displaying a fiery orange iridescence. Micro-crystals (and I mean micro!) of bright metallic silver Tetrahedrite delicately dust the Baryte blades, especially along their crests.\n