Rhodochrosite

specimen number:
1052892

location:
Wolf Mine, Herdorf, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany

description:
Classic old German specimen with deep red scalenohedral translucent crystals of rhodochrosite measuring to 0.3 cm in size throughout matrix. Minimal damage present, this still very nice. The specimen comes with an antique label as shown at the end of the video and dates to the early 20th century.

The Wolf Mine, located near Herdorf in the Siegerland ore district of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, has a long mining history with early open-cast iron extraction dating back to the 18th century and systematic underground development beginning around 1834. Acquired by the Krupp company in 1916, the mine underwent major modernizations before facing closures and revivals through World War I, World War II, and subsequent joint operations with the nearby San Fernando Mine until final cessation in 1962. Geologically, the deposit is characterized by thick hydrothermal veins hosted within Devonian sedimentary rocks of the Rhenish Slate Mountains. Mineralogically, the primary ore consisted of siderite, but the mine became world-famous among collectors for an unusually deep oxidation zone reaching down to four hundred meters, where groundwater interaction produced magnificent specimens of pink to raspberry-red rhodochrosite crystals associated with native copper and brown iron ore.

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