Pyrite with Hematite

specimen number:
9302423

location:
Rio Marina, Elba, Tuscany, Italy

description:

Brilliant bright golden lustrous sharp crystals of pyrite to 5.0 cm in size forming an aesthetic cluster with metallic micaceous crystallized hematite. This is in very good condition and quite fine for this Italian classic. The specimen comes with an antique label as shown at the end of the video, this label dating to the late 19th century.

Rio Marina, located on the eastern coast of Elba Island in Tuscany, Italy, features a world-famous iron-rich geological setting dominated by skarn deposits and metasomatic iron ores formed within Paleozoic and Triassic metamorphic rocks. Artisanal and commercial mining in the region dates back to antiquity, with Etruscans and Romans extensively extracting iron ore thousands of years ago. Today, Rio Marina is legendary among mineral collectors for its historic iron mines, particularly the Cantiere Bacino, which have produced some of the world's finest lustrous pyrite specimens known for their brilliant metallic sheen, sharp pyritohedral and cubic crystal forms, and aesthetic associations with hematite.

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