Detailed information
Species
Ettringite, Quartz
Dimensions
28 x 67 x 23
mm
Locality
N'Chwaning Mines Kuruman, Kalahari Mn. Field N. Cape Province, South Africa
Condition
No recorded repairs
Excellent short and long prismatic hexagonal terminated crystals of bright, acidic lemon-yellow Ettringite are beautifully scattered across a pale-grey druse of sparkling micro-crystals of Quartz with Hematite inclusions. This gorgeous specimen is from the world-famous N'Chwaning mines at Kuruman, in the Kalahari Manganese Field of South Africa. Three mines work this hydrothermally sediment-enriched orebody, the N'Chwaning I, II and III mines, but specimens cannot often be attributed to a specific mine, hence the collective mine name. The Ettringite crystals attain around 9 x 8 x 6 mm and are all perfectly euhedral and undamaged, forming as doubly-terminated hexagonal prisms with pointed pyramidal hexagonal terminations. When the prism is short, the crystals are lenticular and when a little longer, become a stubby barrel-shape and all with a glassy lustre. This is a extremely fine Ettringite specimen from the N'Chwaning mines, whose crystals contrast wonderfully against the Quartz matrix.