Leadhillite

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Leadhillite, named after the mining village of the same name in southern Scotland, is a very rare lead carbonate sulphate hydroxide usually only found as microcrystals. Tsumeb mine in Namibia is well-known for some of the world's richest Leadhillite specimens in terms of overall size and purity of larger crystals, but they are almost never on matrix and typically cleavage surfaces of larger crystals. This miniature-sized Leadhillite from Tsumeb is, at 4.4 x 2.4 cm, a quite substantial crystal of Leadhillite showing the main surface to be one long cleavage surface displaying an excellent pearlescent lustre. It presents the classic pale grey-white colour of Leadhillite from Tsumeb mine, rather than the cream colour from Susanna mine at Leadhills. Ex Kessler Collection.