Gypsum

specimen number:
9892079

location:
Laguna del Rey, Ocampo, Coahuila, Mexico

description:
Loose large twinned crystal grouping of mostly transparent and lustrous gypsum. This is in good condition. Complete all around. Very nice for this Mexican classic.

Laguna del Rey, situated in the municipality of Ocampo in Coahuila, Mexico, is an arid basin hosting the Quimica del Rey industrial complex operated by Industrias Penoles, which has been in active operation since 1962. The area was settled in the mid-1950s following the discovery of extensive subsurface brine deposits rich in sodium and magnesium sulfates. Geologically, the region forms part of the Bolson de Mapimi desert basin system, characterized by widespread Mesozoic carbonate sequences, evaporite beds, and internal drainage networks where severe aridity promotes intense surface and subsurface evaporation. Gypsum (hydrated calcium sulfate) is a dominant evaporite mineral in these playa and sabkha environments, frequently crystallizing under favorable geochemical conditions into distinct structural habits, including spectacular twinned crystals such as swallowtail twins (intergrown crystals sharing a specific crystallographic plane).

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