Vanadinite

specimen number:
9273001

location:
Zellidja Mine, Bou Beker, Jerada, Oriental, Morocco

description:

Exceptionally large and thick crystals of vanadinite measuring to 4.5 cm in length forming a cluster with little attached matrix. In super condition. At one time this specimen was part of the collection of Robert Nowakowski with his catalog number on the back of the piece. This is outstanding for the species from this locality.

The Zellidja mine, situated at Bou Beker within the highly prolific Touissit-Bou Beker mining district of Jerada Province in the Oriental Region of Morocco, was a monumental underground base-metals operation renowned for its massive production of lead and zinc, and celebrated for producing large, thick, yellow-brown crystals of arsenic-rich vanadinite (often classified as the variety endlichite). Geologically, this major deposit is classified as a Mississippi Valley-type (MVT) stratiform ore body, where hot, highly saline hydrothermal fluids migrated upward during the Late Jurassic epoch to systematically dissolve and replace the host Liassic (Early Jurassic) dolomite strata. This extensive mineralization process generated vast lenses of dense primary lead and zinc sulfides, primarily galena and sphalerite, while the intense near-surface weathering and oxidation of these sulfide bodies allowed circulating meteoric waters to precipitate an exceptionally diverse suite of secondary minerals, including well-crystallized cerussite, anglesite, wulfenite, azurite, and malachite, alongside the iconic hexagonal prisms of yellow-brown, arsenic-bearing vanadinite. Historically, the broader district saw its first formal corporate extraction begin in 1926, which led French architect and industrialist Jean Walter to officially establish the Societe des Mines de Zellidja in 1939 to aggressively develop the deep underground workings and construct a major localized lead smelting complex at Oued El Heimer. The Zellidja mine served as an economic cornerstone of eastern Morocco for decades, operating continuously through the post-World War II industrial boom until the gradual depletion of its high-grade underground ore bodies forced the Compagnie Miniere de Touissit (CMT) to permanently cease all large-scale commercial extraction at the site in 2002, with the associated regional smelter finally deactivating in 2012.

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