Pyrrhotite

specimen number:
2262143

location:
Sudbury, Ontario, Canada

description:
Rich masses of pyrrhotite throughout this matrix. Good reference example for the species for this famous Canadian mining district.

The Sudbury Basin, located in Ontario, Canada, is one of the largest and oldest known impact structures on Earth, famous for its world-class nickel-copper-platinum group element deposits. Geologically, the basin was formed approximately 1.85 billion years ago by a massive bolide impact, which melted a significant portion of the crust and led to the formation of the Sudbury Igneous Complex, where heavy metal sulfides settled into the base of the melt sheet and surrounding offset dikes. Historically, mining and quarrying activities began in 1883 during the construction of the Canadian Pacific Railway, when blasting revealed rich copper-nickel mineralization at the Murray Mine site. This discovery triggered a massive industrial boom, leading to the formation of major corporations like Inco (now Vale) and Falconbridge (now Glencore), which have operated dozens of underground and open-pit mines across the basin for over 140 years. Production reached immense levels during the 20th century to meet global demands for stainless steel and military hardware, with the district remaining a dominant force in the global nickel market through the early 21st century.

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