Rhodochrosite

Unknown Owner

This rather gorgeous miniature Rhodochrosite is from Pasto Bueno in the Pampas District, Ancash Department, Peru. If you are not familiar with this mining district do look it up on mindat (mindat.org) . The stunning photo shown on the home page for this locality never fails to amaze me when to see the mine buildings precariously clinging to the mountain side. If the building were absent it would just appear as a mountain side, but given the building as a measure of scale, one is left looking on in awe! This beautiful miniature is an ex-matrix cluster of translucent to partly transparent scalenohedral Rhodochrosite crystals of intense cherry red forming well developed crystals. It is necessary to point out the tip of one crystal has been cleaved and so is not perfect. Not wishing to make excuses, this is very common in such elongated Rhodochrosite crystals and for many collection does not detract from the specimen's aesthetic.