Gypsum

specimen number:
9302416

location:
Bleicherode, Nordhausen, Thuringia, Germany

description:

An aesthetic and attractive grouping, this a sort of chain of orange to colorless lustrous and gemmy prismatic gypsum crystals. No matrix, this is in very good condition all around.

Bleicherode, situated in the Nordhausen district of Thuringia, Germany, is located along the southern margin of the Harz Mountains. Geologically, the region is shaped by extensive Permian Zechstein evaporite formations containing rich layers of halite, sylvite, and carnallite. After the discovery of deep subterranean potash deposits around 1888, industrial shaft sinking commenced in 1899, rapidly establishing Bleicherode as a major center for potash mining and processing. Operations continued throughout the twentieth century under various management regimes before traditional underground mining ceased in 1990. Today, portions of the site serve industrial waste repositories and historical monuments, while the locality remains noted among mineral collectors for sharp halite cubes, well-formed gypsum crystals, and distinct evaporite mineral specimens.

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