Anglesite on Cerussite

specimen number:
1052359

location:
Broken Hill, New South Wales, Australia

description:
Classic Australian specimen with crystals of cerussite measuring to 4.5 cm in size across the top of matrix and in the process of being replaced with sparkling colorless micro crystals of anglesite. This is in good condition. The specimen comes with an antique label as shown at the end of the video and would date to the very early 20th century, if not the late 19th century. This is certainly from the early days of mining that this famous locality.

Mining at Broken Hill in New South Wales, Australia began in 1883 after the discovery of a large lead zinc silver orebody that became one of the richest base metal deposits in the world. The deposit occurs in highly metamorphosed sedimentary rocks and was developed through extensive underground mining operations. Broken Hill quickly grew into a major mining center and gave rise to the Broken Hill Proprietary Company, later known as BHP. For more than a century the district produced large amounts of silver, lead, and zinc and played a major role in the development of the Australian mining industry.

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