Bornite

This nicely crystallized Bornite from Morocco is a real turn up for the books. It is an old-time survivor of something which has almost become forgotten about. Dating to the 1970s, this fine miniature was bought in 1978 by Dr Hans-Jurgen Wilke (1925-2014) from A.L. McGuinness in California for the princely sum of $50. All of its previous labels record it as Chalcocite, but its is quite clearly Bornite, showing the excellent purple and indigo-blue metallic internal surfaces. The crystals are elongated, somewhat blade-like and reach 1.6 cm in length, but are rounded externally, possibly due to water smoothing. The rear of the specimen has fractured exposed surfaces that show the typical features of Bornite. It is from Talat n'Ouamane in the western Anti-Atlas Mountains. Specimens from there are rarely seen, making this not only a very fine Bornite from Morocco, but a historically significant one too.