Detailed information
Species
Cuprian Smithsonite
Dimensions
65 x 150 x 30
mm
Locality
Tsumeb Mine Otjikoto Region Namibia
Condition
No recorded repairs
This really unusual Tsumeb mine Smithsonite is not only a lovely peppermint green colour, but has an intriguing form too. It is a thin cast after an unknown mineral and the Smithsonite is not only copper-rich, or cuprian, but has occasional tiny pale emerald green Dioptase inclusions. Its overall shape I liken to a slug. Several old collection labels accompany the specimen, one of which notes that it is ex Ed David and possibily ex Smithsonian. It is a very strange Smithsonite, whose form is most similar to the famous Dolomite casts seen from Tsumeb, so perhaps the carbonate geochemistry shifted from magnesium and iron to zinc-rich.