Aurichalcite with Smithsonite

specimen number:
2133306

location:
Apex Mine, Washington Co., Utah, USA

description:
Open pockets throughout this matrix are lined with crystallized aurichalcite and smithsonite.

The Apex mine, located in the Tutsagubet mining district of the Beaver Dam Mountains in Washington County, Utah, is a historically significant underground operation situated within a complex geological setting. The deposit occurs primarily as polymetallic carbonate replacement bodies and structural breccia pipes hosted within the thick Palaeozoic limestone and dolomite units of the region, notably the Mississippian Redwall Limestone. Hydrothermal fluids deposited extensive primary sulfides that underwent deep supergene alteration, forming a highly oxidized zone rich in copper, zinc, iron, and silver, along with exceptionally high concentrations of the critical tech-metals gallium and germanium. Commercial mining at the site began around 1884, operating intermittently under various leases for its copper and silver content through the early to mid-20th century before caving and economic shifts caused temporary closures, such as between 1905 to 1914 and after 1962. The property gained international prominence when it was revived from 1985 to 1988 by Musto Explorations, and later in the 1990s under Hecla Mining Company, as the first primary, jarosite-hosted gallium and germanium producer in the United States, with renewed underground exploration and decline development launching as recently as late 2025 under Blue Moon Metals.

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