Algodonite

specimen number:
2262187

location:
Cobalt, Ontario, Canada

description:
Rich metallic masses throughout a quartz matrix. A good example for the species. The specimen comes with a previous data card as shown at the end of the video. This card gives an original acquisition date from the specimen of 1963.

The Cobalt mining district, located in northeastern Ontario, Canada, is a historic silver camp where the rare copper arsenide mineral algodonite has been found in minor quantities. Geologically, the area is famous for its rich Proterozoic native silver and cobalt-nickel arsenide veins, which cut through the Huronian Coleman Member conglomerates and Archean volcanic rocks near the margins of the Nipissing diabase sill. While the district is primarily characterized by arsenides like skutterudite and safflorite, local hydrothermal variations occasionally produced copper-dominant arsenides like algodonite, which occurs as metallic, dull gray to steel-grey massive aggregates within the vein carbonate matrix. Historically, the district was discovered in 1903 during the construction of the Temiskaming and Northern Ontario Railway, triggering a massive silver rush that led to the development of dozens of underground mines and open cuts. Peak production occurred between 1905 and the 1920s, after which operations declined significantly, though intermittent mining for cobalt and silver continued through various reprocessing projects into the late 20th century.

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