Villamaninite

specimen number:
5008121

location:
La Divina Providencia mine, Carmenes, Villamanin, Leon, Spain

description:
Crude rounded crystals of this rare species on matrix. From the type locality, quite rare worldwide.

The Divina Providencia Mine, often referred to as La Profunda, is located in the Carmenes district within the Central Leon Mountains of northern Spain. Commercial mining operations in the area began in the early 20th century, specifically around 1906, focusing primarily on copper extraction. The mine operated with various interruptions until its final closure in 1963. Geologically, the deposit is situated within carbonate rocks such as limestones and dolomites, where low-temperature hydrothermal fluids interacted with regional tectonic structures to deposit unusual metal-rich veins. Mineralogically, the mine is world-famous as the type locality for villamaninite, a very rare sulfide mineral containing copper, nickel, cobalt, and iron. Discovered around 1919 to 1920 when ore samples were sent to London for metallurgical study, the mineral was named after the nearby railway loading station of Villamanin by British researchers, and the site remains the only known locality in the world where macroscopic specimens of this rare species can be found.

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