Chalcopyrite with Dolomite

specimen number:
2292159

location:
Brushy Creek Mine, Reynolds Co., Missouri, USA

description:
Sparkling golden crystals of chalcopyrite, many of these iridescent, to 0.3 cm in size across both sides of a breccia matrix covered with sparkling white crystals of dolomite. Attractive and in good condition.

The Brushy Creek mine, located near Greeley in Reynolds County, Missouri, is a major underground lead-zinc-copper mine situated within the world-class Viburnum Trend. Geologically, the deposit is a classic Mississippi Valley-type (MVT) stratabound mineralization where hydrothermal fluids replaced the permeable oolitic and dolostone facies of the Cambrian Bonneterre Formation, precipitating massive ore bodies of galena, sphalerite, and chalcopyrite, often accompanied by spectacular collector specimens of calcite, marcasite, and chalcopyrite crystals. Construction of the mining infrastructure by the St. Joe Minerals Corporation began in 1969, and commercial production commenced in 1973 using large-scale, mechanized room-and-pillar extraction methods. The mine has operated continuously for over five decades under subsequent corporate owners including the Doe Run Company, undergoing periodic modernization to remain a highly productive domestic source of lead and zinc into the 2020s.

Questions about this specimen?
Send an email or call us: 314-341-1811.