Pyrite (SUL-0015)

specimen number:
9273062

location:
Ampliacion a Victoria Mine, Navajun, La Rioja, Spain

description:
Classic Spanish pyrite specimen was sharp golden lustrous crystals of pyrite measuring to 2.2 cm on edge set up on matrix. In super condition.

The Ampliacion a Victoria mine, located near the village of Navajun in the Alcarama mountain range of La Rioja, Spain, is an active quarry globally celebrated for producing the world's finest, mirror-lustrous cubic pyrite specimens. Geologically, the deposit is hosted within Cretaceous-aged marl strata of the Urbion Group, where low-grade hydrothermal metamorphism mobilized sulfur into iron-rich sediments, allowing perfect, brass-yellow pyrite cubes to crystallize inside a soft, clay-rich matrix. While localized mining for base metals occurred in the broader region for centuries, the specific pyrite-bearing potential of this site was first recognized in 1965 by Pedro Ansorena Garret during prospecting. Formal commercial exploitation under the official Ampliacion a Victoria concession was granted on May 2, 1983, transitioning the site from historical base metal exploration into a highly specialized operation dedicated almost exclusively to the careful, manual extraction of pristine mineral specimens for collectors and museums.

Questions about this specimen?
Send an email or call us: 314-341-1811.