Tennantite with Dolomite

specimen number:
1653084

location:
Tsumeb Mine, Otjikoto, Namibia

description:

Sharp crystals of tennantite measuring to 1.5 cm in size on matrix with crystallized dolomite. Very slight micro-damage present, this still quite good for this Namibian classic.

The Tsumeb Mine in Namibia is one of the most famous polymetallic deposits in the world, with large scale mining beginning around 1905 and continuing until its closure in 1996. The deposit is a complex pipe like ore body hosted in dolomitic limestone and is exceptionally rich in copper, lead, zinc, and numerous trace elements. Extensive underground workings reached great depths and produced an extraordinary diversity of minerals, particularly from the oxidized zones. Among the sulfide minerals present is tennantite, a copper arsenic sulfosalt that typically occurs as dark metallic crystals and masses within the primary ore zones. Tennantite formed during hydrothermal mineralization as metal rich fluids deposited complex sulfide assemblages in fractures and replacement bodies. Its presence reflects the chemically diverse and evolving conditions that make Tsumeb one of the most mineralogically significant localities in the world.

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