Mimetite

specimen number:
2133229

location:
Dry Gill Mine, Caldbeck Fells, Cumbria, England, UK

description:
Lustrous rounded classic crystals of mimetite on matrix. This is in good condition. A choice thumbnail for this British classic.

The Dry Gill Mine, situated in the rugged Caldbeck Fells of Cumbria, England, is a historic lead and copper locality renowned for its unique mineralogy. Geologically, the mine is located within a major north-south trending fault zone where hydrothermal fluids deposited minerals into veins cutting through Ordovician-aged volcanic rocks. The site is the world-famous type locality for campylite, a distinctive variety of mimetite characterized by its barrel-shaped, curved crystals. These crystals, which range in color from a vibrant ochre-yellow to a deep brownish-red, owe their rounded morphology to a chemical transition between mimetite and pyromorphite. Historically, the mine was worked intermittently from the mid-19th century until its final closure in the late 1800s, primarily for lead and small amounts of copper. Despite the cessation of industrial mining over a century ago, the Dry Gill Mine remains a legendary site for mineral collectors, as the aesthetic and structural uniqueness of its campylite specimens is considered unsurpassed by any other global locality.

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