Sphalerite with Siderite

$175.00

$40.00 shipping
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Tucson, Arizona, USA

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Boltsburn is one of the most famous of the Weardale mines in County Durham, northern England, but specimens from there are certainly not common. This piece from Malcolm Southwood's collection is even more unusual in that it is not the Fluorite for which the mine was most famous, but Sphalerite on Siderite. Boltsburn mine extended in two directions (East and West) with the western part of the mine worked for the greater part of its life (during the middle of the 19th century) for Sideritic ironstone ores. The exact part of the mine from which this specimen came is not known but it was acquired by Malcolm Southwood in 2002. It consists of a thin bed of small brown Siderite crystals upon which glossy black Sphalerite crystals (to 5 mm across) are scattered. This will make a really nice addition to a north of England collection.