Azurite with Malachite on Cuprite

specimen number:
2292181

location:
Czar Shaft, Bisbee, Arizona, USA

description:
Classic specimen from Arizona with bladed blue crystals of azurite to 0.5 cm in size across the top of matrix with fibrous green crystallized malachite. Scattered throughout are small crystals of octahedral cuprite, these partially coated by green malachite. Very minimal damage present. Classic material for this old locality.

The Czar shaft, located in Bisbee within the Warren mining district of Cochise County, Arizona, was a prolific historical copper producer operated by the Copper Queen Consolidated Mining Company. Geologically, the deposit consists of high-grade copper carbonates and oxides, including malachite, azurite, and cuprite, which formed via supergene enrichment where hydrothermal fluids replaced Paleozoic limestones, specifically the Cambrian Martin Limestone, near its contact with the Sacramento Hill porphyry stock. Sunk in 1881 to tap into these shallow, incredibly rich oxidized ore bodies, the shaft served as a central hub of the Bisbee operations, utilizing square-set timbering to navigate the soft, unstable ground. The Czar shaft remained a primary underground producer until the 1920s when the easily accessible oxidized ores neared depletion, causing the operators to shift focus to deeper shafts and open-pit methods elsewhere in the district, though the site remained a point of entry for maintenance and specialized specimen recovery for decades afterward.

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