Detailed information
Species
Bustamite, Quartz
Dimensions
44 x 55 x 31
mm
Weight
140 g
Locality
Broken Hill Yancowinna Co., New South Wales Australia
Condition
No recorded repairs
Bustamite, a calcium-manganese silicate, is a mineral very much associated with the mines at Broken Hill, Australia, despite its type locality being Franklin mine in New Jersey, USA. Although no specific mine at Broken hill has been recorded with this large miniature, it is likely from the Zinc Corporation mine, just north of Patton Street in Broken Hill. This is a deliciously rich specimen with many double terminated, salmon to pinkish-orange crystals developed out from a creamy-off white cryptocrystalline Quartz matrix. The individual Bustamite crystal are several centimetres long and have a characteristic, rounded, almost water-worn habit with a bright yet greasy lustre. A terrific Bustamite from the Broken Hill mining district.