Bornite with Chalcocite

Unknown Owner

Cook's Kitchen mine is one of the most famous historic Cornish mines, dating back to the mid-1700s. Situated amongst one of the most intensively mined stretches of ground in Britain, it began as a copper mine, but like many in the Camborne-Redruth area switched to tin which was found at depth beneath the copper in a classic case of regional mineral zoning. This miniature specimen presents two of the classic copper sulphide minerals for which Cook's Kitchen was famous - Chalcocite and Bornite. With Chlorite (locally known as peach) forming the base, coarsely crystallized Arsenopyrite with a little Quartz passes upwards to intergrown crystals of Bornite and Chalcocite, with some platy crystals looking like they might even be Bornite pseudomorphs after Chalcocite. There is some bruising to the surface, but this is a rich and interesting assemblage from Cook's Kitchen mine. Ex Malcolm Southwood collection, no. MS 2014.234, and ex David Cowan collection.