Detailed information
Species
Chalcopyrite, Sphalerite, Quartz
Dimensions
36 x 23 x 19
mm
Weight
12 g
Locality
Kara-Oba Betpakdala Desert Karagandy Province, Kazakhstan
Condition
No recorded repairs
Kara-Oba was a greisen-hosted tungsten deposit situated in Betpakdala Desert, Karagandy Province, Kazakhstan that closed in 1996. Perhaps most famous for unusual crystal forms of Fluorite and fine 'Wolframite' crystals it has also produced other fine crystallized mineral species. This very large thumbnail piece displays well-formed brassy metallic tetrahedral Chalcopyrite crystals to 9 mm across, aggregated in groups upon long, narrow, Quartz var. Rock Crystal crystals, the largest being a doubly-terminated crystal 2.3 cm in length. A small crust of black Sphalerite microcrystals is also present on some of the Quartz. The corners of many of the Chalcopyrite crystals are contacted, but well-crystallized specimens of Chalcopyrite from Kara-Oba are rarely seen, and this one still displays nicely.