Pyrite

specimen number:
9892022

location:
Canutillos, Tacobamba, Cornelio Saavedra, Potosi, Bolivia

description:
Bright golden lustrous crystals of pyrite to almost 1.0 cm in size on matrix. In good condition. This shows a combination of the diploid and octahedral habit.

The Canutillos mine, located in the Tacobamba Municipality of Cornelio Saavedra Province in the Potosi Department of Bolivia, has a mining history tied to the region's rich polymetallic belt. While small-scale and artisanal workings date back centuries following Spanish colonial expansion, intensive modern industrial extraction, particularly for tin and silver, developed through the mid-20th century under state and private operations. The mine has experienced intermittent closures, reorganizations, and modern revivals driven by various corporate and cooperative ventures. Geologically, the deposit is situated within the Eastern Cordillera of the Central Andes, where Cretaceous sedimentary strata and Paleozoic marine sediments are intruded by Miocene subvolcanic dacitic dikes and stocks, hosting epithermal vein systems and hydrothermal breccias rich in silver, tin, and base metal sulfides.

The diploid crystal form of pyrite, also known historically as the dyakis dodecahedron, is a rare and complex form belonging to the isometric crystal system. Mathematically classified as a 24-faced non-uniform polyhedron, the diploid features chiral quadrilateral faces that exhibit specialized symmetry along its axes. Unlike the standard cubic or simple pyritohedral habits commonly seen in pyrite, the diploid displays intricate, highly modified interfacial geometry. It is exceptionally uncommon in nature, making well-formed diploid pyrite specimens prized collector items that demonstrate the structural versatility of iron disulfide within the cubic system.

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