Epidote with Actinolite

specimen number:
2072117

location:
Knappenwand, Untersulzbach, Salzburg, Austria

description:
Good reference quality example for this famous Austrian locality. Green prismatic lustrous crystals of epidote across the top of matrix with needlelike crystals of green actinolite. At one time part of the collection of Renaud Vochten.

The Knappenwand is a legendary mineral locality situated in the Untersulzbach Valley within the Hohe Tauern National Park of Salzburg, Austria. Geologically, it is a classic alpine-cleft deposit located in a contact zone between amphibolite and epidote-gneiss within the Central Gneiss complex of the Tauern Window. This unique site formed during the Alpine Orogeny when high-pressure metamorphic fluids circulated through tectonic fissures, depositing a rich suite of silicate minerals as the mountains were uplifted. Historically, the deposit was discovered in 1865 by Alois Wurnitsch, a local mountain guide, and it quickly gained international fame for its incredible mineral diversity. Mining at the site has always been a dangerous and seasonal endeavor due to the steep, vertical nature of the rock wall and its high-altitude location in the Austrian Alps.

For mineral collectors, Knappenwand is universally recognized as the world's premier locality for epidote. The crystals found here are world-class, featuring an intense, deep "bottle-green" to nearly black color and an extraordinary metallic luster that is rarely matched by other sites. These epidote crystals often form as long, slender, and highly transparent prisms that can reach lengths of over ten centimeters. They are frequently found in aesthetic association with "mountain leather" (a variety of asbestos), bright green actinolite (known locally as byssolite), and glassy clear quartz prisms. The most famous specimens feature sharp, lustrous epidote crystals nestled within a soft, white carpet of byssolite fibers. Because the locality is now protected within a national park, modern specimen recovery is strictly regulated, ensuring that historic Knappenwand pieces remain among the most prestigious and valuable treasures in any European mineral collection.

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