Fluorite with Dolomite, Sphalerite, Barite, Quartz

specimen number:
8911207

location:
Elmwood Mine, Smith Co., Tennessee, USA

description:
Very attractive combination piece with a deep purple translucent lustrous crystals of fluorite measuring to 2.0 cm on edge across a breccia matrix that is coated with colorless crystallized dolomite and micro crystals of quartz. Small crystals of barite and sphalerite are scattered throughout. This is in terrific condition all around. The specimen comes with two previous labels, one from the Alton collection and the other from the collection of Kay Robertson.

The Elmwood complex, comprising primarily of the Elmwood, Gordonsville, and Cumberland Mines, in Smith County, Tennessee, is situated within Paleozoic carbonate rock formations where mineralizing hydrothermal brines circulated through ancient, open solution cavities, faults, and breccia zones. Originally developed for industrial underground mining starting in the 1970s, the facility gained global renown among mineral collectors because miners recovered world-class crystal specimens from vugs and cavities intersected during operations. While the complex has experienced intermittent commercial closures and changes in corporate ownership over the decades, it remains a legendary locality celebrated for producing some of the finest aesthetic mineral crystals ever discovered.

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