Dioptase

specimen number:
2262222

location:
Altyn-Tyube, Bukhar-Zhyrau, Karaganda, Kazakhstan

description:
A beautiful example from the type locality for the species with emerald green lustrous slightly translucent crystals of dioptase covering the top of matrix. This is in good condition with just minimal damage along one edge of the matrix. Specimen comes with a previous label from the dealer Larry Conklin as shown at the end of the video.

Altyn-Tyube, located in the Karaganda Region of central Kazakhstan, is a world-famous copper deposit celebrated as the official type locality for the vivid green copper silicate mineral dioptase. Geologically, this deposit is situated within a sequence of Paleozoic limestones and sandstones where secondary copper mineralization formed inside the upper oxidized zone of a copper sulfide body. The dioptase crystallized as brilliant, elongated rhombohedral prisms lining cavities and vugs within a highly distinct limestone matrix, often accompanied by malachite and calcite. Historically, while the site was worked on a small scale for malachite and cuprite during prehistoric times, its modern significance began in the late 18th century when a merchant named Achir Mahmed discovered the vibrant green crystals around 1785. Believing they had found a massive emerald deposit, miners sent samples to Moscow, but subsequent laboratory analysis by prominent scientists proved it was a distinct new species. French mineralogist Rene Just Hauy formally described and named the mineral dioptase in 1797 based on these Altyn-Tyube specimens. Small-scale mining and seasonal specimen quarrying continued intermittently through the 19th and 20th centuries under Soviet administration, and independent mineralogists continue to extract highly prized reference pieces from the site through 2026.

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