Chrysocolla ps. after Malachite ps. after Azurite with Quartz - image 1

Chrysocolla ps. after Malachite ps. after Azurite with Quartz

Unknown Owner

A fabulous pair of broad, V-shaped crystals composed from double pseudomorphs of intense sky-blue Chrysocolla replacing Malachite after Azurite and coated in Quartz, from a magnificent recent find in the Tenke-Fungurume area of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) in Central Africa. Two former tabular Azurite crystals, now pseudomorphed to Chrysocolla, form a splayed and flattened V-profile of tabular Chrysocolla crystals tapering towards Gothic window-like terminations and totally encrusted with sparkling micro-Quartz crystals with a bright glassy lustre. The Chrysocolla is a stunning sky-blue, a result of the underlying rich powder-blue Chrysocolla being coated with transparent colourless Quartz. In the base (as seen through its acrylic mount) can be seen a small and narrow remnant core of deep leaf-green Malachite. The Tenke-Fungurume area delineates a 30 km copper-cobalt mineralised zone between Tenke hill in the NW and Fungurume hill in the SE of the Kolwezi mining district. The region holds large ore reserves and to date a suite of 31 minerals have been recorded, including some exceedingly rare copper species. A delightful V-shaped pseudomorph of magnificent colour from the Kolwezi mining district of the DRC.