Fluorite with Sphalerite, Pyrite, Calcite

specimen number:
1822108

location:
Naica, Saucillo, Chihuahua, Mexico

description:
Attractive combination piece with green lustrous gemmy crystals of fluorite to 4.2 cm across set on a matrix of brilliant lustrous twinned black sphalerite crystals. Small golden lustrous crystals of pyrite and scalenohedral colorless crystals of calcite accent the piece nicely. This is a floater with no points of attachment and in excellent condition.

The Naica mining district in Chihuahua, Mexico, originated with its first recorded claim in 1794, transitioned through intermittent operations and modern industrial development by companies like Industrias Penoles, and suspended operations indefinitely in October 2015 due to uncontrollable underground flooding. Geologically, the deposit sits within an Early Cretaceous carbonate sequence of limestones and dolostones intruded by a hidden magmatic body. This intrusive heat source maintained a deep, mineral-saturated thermal aquifer for hundreds of thousands of years, driving hydrothermal ore deposition (lead, zinc, and silver) as well as the specialized dissolution and recrystallization cycle that formed the world-famous giant selenite gypsum crystals found within its underground cavities.

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