Pyrargyrite

Unknown Owner

Help improve this recordNo owner is registered for this specimen yet. If it's yours or you know more about it, you can add the owner, provenance, publications and other details.

Small but exquisite springs to mind when seeing this crystallized Pyrargyrite from Millotingo mine in San Mateo District, Huarochirí Province, Lima, Peru. At least four well-formed prismatic Pyrargyrite crystals fan out from each other. The largest, at 1.2 cm in length, is extremely well crystallized, but does have a chip on one side of the prism, possibly where another crystal detached. The crystals have a fine deep grey metallic lustre with a slightly resinous appearance as typical of Pyrargyrite. Millotingo mine operated from 1933 to 1992 and was predominantly a silver producer but gold was recovered as a significant byproduct. The silver ores were silver sulphosalts of which Pyrargyrite and Polybasite were the most important. Mineral specimens from this important mine are rarely seen for sale making this small, but finely crystallized Pyrargyrite, all the more important.