Sphalerite

A difficult specimen to photograph, but the quality of the Sphalerite crystals on this specimen is better than the vast majority of Sphalerites to come out of the Eagle Mine (more properly the New Jersey Zinc Eagle Mine). Several very sharp, rather lustrous and SMOOTH Spinel-twinned crystals of jet-black Sphalerite are intergrown with very minor Siderite “discs” to create this large thumbnail sized display specimen. Were it not for the small Siderites on the side of the piece, I might have a hard time believing it’s from Gilman, but make no mistake, this is a great quality piece from this famous Zinc producer. Better in person, and more than worthwhile for somebody who collects this material. The Eagle Mine was the center of lead and zinc mining in Colorado for a time and produced some of the state’s most memorable mineral specimens, along with the neighboring Groundhog Mine that produced the finest Wire Gold specimens in the world extant! Specimen# CO712B75