Quartz with Chalcopyrite, Hematite (SIL-039)

specimen number:
9273126

location:
Boliver Mine, Piedras Verdes, Chihuahua, Mexico

description:

A cluster of double terminated colorless to red quartz crystals, this hosting bright lustrous golden chalcopyrite. The red color is due to the presence of hematite. Completely crystallized all around and in excellent condition.

The Bolivar mine, situated in the Urique Municipality within the southwestern part of the state of Chihuahua, Mexico, is an active underground operation specializing in copper and zinc extraction with significant silver and gold byproducts. Geologically, the deposit is classified as a classic copper-zinc skarn hosted within the Lower Cretaceous volcanic-sedimentary sequence of the Alisitos Formation. Mineralization formed when Late Cretaceous to Early Tertiary granodiorite and quartz monzonite stocks intruded local limestones and tuffs, generating extensive hydrothermal alteration and depositing dense zones of chalcopyrite, sphalerite, and galena. The history of the area dates back to the Spanish colonial era when high-grade, near-surface gold and silver veins were first exploited by artisanal miners. Modern commercial development of the specific Bolivar project began around 2002 with extensive geological exploration by Sierra Metals (formerly Dia Bras Exploration), leading to the commencement of pilot plant production in 2006. Full-scale commercial extraction and milling operations launched in November 2011, and the mine has undergone steady expansions to its processing capacity, maintaining continuous, highly mechanized deep-shaft production well into the 2020s.

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