Celestine

specimen number:
2013564

location:
Holloway Quarry, Newport, Michigan, USA

description:
Aesthetic bladed pale blue and gemmy lustrous crystals of Celestine measuring to 8.5 cm in length coming off matrix. This is in terrific condition all around.

The Holloway Quarry, located in Newport, Monroe County, Michigan, is a significant Midwestern locality recognized for its high-quality celestine specimens. Geologically, the quarry exposes the Silurian-aged Raisin River Dolomite, part of the Bass Islands Group, which contains numerous vugs and cavities formed by the dissolution of evaporite minerals. Within these voids, hydrothermal or groundwater fluids precipitated celestine (strontium sulfate) as exceptionally clear to pale blue, tabular crystals, often associated with sulfur, calcite, and strontianite. Historically, the quarry was operated by the Holloway Sand and Gravel Company as a source of crushed stone for construction and aggregate. While industrial activities were most prominent during the mid to late 20th century, the site became a favorite destination for mineral collectors in the 1960s and 1970s due to the discovery of spectacular pockets of well-formed, glassy crystals. Today, the quarry is largely inactive and inaccessible for private collecting, but it remains a classic reference locality for the secondary mineralogy of the Michigan Basin's sedimentary sequences.

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