Quartz

specimen number:
2292147

location:
Black Pine Mine, Granite Co., Montana, USA

description:
Colorless glassy gemmy crystals of quartz coming off matrix. In good condition. Very choice for this old classic Montana locality.

The Black Pine mine, located in the Combination district of the John Long Mountains in Granite County, Montana, is a historic metal deposit recognized for a diverse suite of secondary copper, zinc, and silver minerals. Geologically, the deposit is hosted within quartz veins that cut through the Mesoproterozoic Spokane Formation, which consists primarily of quartzite and argillite rocks. The primary mineralization includes tetrahedrite, galena, and sphalerite, which underwent extensive oxidation to form rich assemblages of secondary minerals like philipsburgite, veszelyite, bayldonite, and malachite within the upper zones of the veins. Underground mining operations for silver and copper began around 1885 with the discovery of the Combination vein system, leading to the construction of a local mill and sporadic production by the Combination Mining and Milling Company until 1897. The mine experienced a major revival in 1932 when Black Pine Silver Mines, Inc. resumed operations, followed by intermittent production of fluxing ore and silver-bearing silica under various corporate leases until the underground workings and subsequent tailings reclamation projects were finalized in the late twentieth century.

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