Smithsonite

specimen number:
2282072

location:
Tsumeb Mine, Otjikoto, Namibia

description:
Lustrous rhombohedral crystals of smithsonite across the front of matrix. In good condition.

The Tsumeb mine, located in the Otjikoto region of northern Namibia, is an historic underground base-metal operation celebrated for its remarkable variety of mineral species. Geologically, the deposit consists of a steeply dipping, pipelike mineralized body hosted within a thick sequence of late Proterozoic dolomites belonging to the Otavi Group. This unique pipe-like structure was intensely altered by deep-seated supergene weathering processes, resulting in three distinct zones of profound oxidation that yielded exceptional secondary lead, copper, and zinc arsenates and carbonates. Formal commercial mining at Tsumeb commenced in 1907 under the German-led Otavi Minen- und Eisenbahn-Gesellschaft (OMEG) and continued, with brief interruptions during world conflicts, under Tsumeb Corporation Limited (TCL) after 1947. Rising operational costs, complex technical challenges at deep levels, and major flooding events eventually led to the cessation of all primary commercial mining operations in 1996, closing out nearly nine decades of massive industrial production.

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