Skutterudite

specimen number:
2262150

location:
Bou Azzer, Draa-Tafilalet, Morocco

description:
Bright metallic crystals of skutterudite to 0.8 cm in size embedded within a calcite matrix. A good example for the species for this locality.

Bou Azzer, located in the central Anti-Atlas Mountains of Morocco, is a world-renowned mining district famous for being the only place where cobalt is extracted as a primary product from arsenide ores. Geologically, the deposit is situated within a Neoproterozoic ophiolite complex, where hydrothermal fluids deposited mineralization along the contacts between serpentinite and quartz-diorite rocks. Skutterudite, a cobalt arsenide mineral, is the principal ore at this locality and is celebrated by collectors for its sharp, lustrous, tin-white cubic or octahedral crystals that often occur in spectacular groupings within a carbonate matrix. Historically, mining and quarrying activities at Bou Azzer began in the early 1930s following the discovery of cobalt-rich outcrops, with the first commercial production starting around 1934. The district has remained a critical global supplier of cobalt for nearly a century, operating through various phases of modernization and expansion, including the development of several underground mines like the Mechoui and Tamdrost units. Despite the complex metallurgy required to process the arsenic-rich ores, the mines have maintained continuous operation except for a brief hiatus in the 1980s.

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