Fluorite with Barite

specimen number:
2312452

location:
Minerva Mine #1, Hardin Co., Illinois, USA

description:
A gorgeous cluster of gemmy color zoned fluorite crystals measuring to 3.8 cm on edge. These are a deep amber in color with bluish color zoning. White balls of crystallized barite are floating throughout as inclusions. Typical of these slight micro-damage present, in my opinion this is in great condition. Gorgeous when backlit as shown in the picture and at the end of the video.

The Minerva Mine Number 1, located near Cave-in-Rock in Hardin County, Illinois, was a cornerstone of the historic Illinois-Kentucky fluorspar district. Discovered in 1940 and sinking its primary shaft in 1942, the mine operated intermittently until its final closure in 1996. Geologically, the deposit sits within Mississippian-age carbonate host rocks, where fluorine-bearing hydrothermal fluids migrated through regional faults and bedding-plane replacement zones to form rich ore bodies. Mineralogically, the mine achieved world-renowned status among collectors for producing spectacular specimens, most notably exceptionally sharp cubic and multi-colored fluorite crystals often associated with sphalerite, calcite, barite, strontianite, and witherite.

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