5.3" Sphalerite on Quartz and Calcite - Elmwood Mine

Sphalerite on Quartz and Calcite - Elmwood Mine #66311

This is a 5.3" wide specimen containing sphalerite crystals on a sparkling quartz and calcite encrusted matrix, collected from the famous Elmwood mine in Tennessee. Small and large sphalerite crystal clusters can be found peppered across what could be considered the top of the specimen, with the largest cluster measuring .5" wide.

The Elmwood Mine is a zinc mine in Carthage, Tennessee that opened in 1969. It then closed for many years, only to be reopened in 2010. It has produced many world class specimens of fluorite, calcite, barite, and galena over the years. Specimens used to be plentiful as miners were allowed to recover specimens, but collecting is strictly prohibited by the new mine owners. They've gone to great lengths to prevent the mining of specimens, including blasting crystal pockets or filling them with slurry.

Shalerite ((Zn,Fe)S) is a mineral that is the chief ore of zinc while Galena is a primary ore for lead.

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