Tetrahedrite-Hg with Cinnabar, Pyrite, Quartz

specimen number:
1052628

location:
Rudnany, Spisska Nova Ves, Kosice, Slovakia

description:

Interesting specimen showing masses of metallic mercury rich tetrahedrite with quartz and much red massive cinnabar. Minor pyrite is present. The specimen comes with an antique label as shown at the end of the video. This label gives an original acquisition date of 1906.

Rudnany, historically known by its German name Kotterbach, is located in the Spis-Gemer region of the Slovak Ore Mountains and stands as one of the most significant mercury-bearing siderite deposits in Europe. Geologically, the area is defined by massive hydrothermal veins hosted in Paleozoic metamorphic rocks, where mineralizing fluids deposited an abundance of siderite and barite alongside mercury-rich sulfosalts. The locality is particularly famous for tetrahedrite-Hg, also known as schwazite, which occurs as dark grey to black metallic crystals, and its close association with cinnabar, which often appears as vibrant red grains or coatings within the vein matrix. Historically, mining and quarrying activities in Rudnany date back to the 14th century, initially focusing on silver and copper before shifting to intensive iron and mercury extraction in the late 19th and 20th centuries. The peak of industrial operation occurred between 1945 and 1990 under state management, making it the primary source of mercury for the former Czechoslovakia. While most large-scale underground mining ceased by the mid-1990s due to economic shifts and environmental concerns, the district remains a legendary site for mineral collectors and researchers.

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