Detailed information
Species
Native Copper
Dimensions
34 x 58 x 35
mm
Weight
150 g
Locality
Rudabánya, Rudabányai Mts. Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén County Hungary
Condition
No recorded repairs
This fine miniature specimen of compact 'spongey' "Native Copper" comes from the ancient silver and copper mining region of Rudabánya in Hungary. Not only is this a lovely specimen, but it is accompanied by a really old looking handwritten label which I would estimate to date to the early part of the 19th century. Some Native Copper specimens were found at Rudabánya in the 1960s and possibly later, but to have this old label really enhances the importance of this piece and suggests that it might not be natural Native Copper, but precipitated Copper from the settling ponds used to extract the metal in the historical workings. A similar process was used successfully at Parys Mountain copper mine in Wales. This specimen was formerly in the superb collection Martin and Michael Günther (1951-2007 & 1956-2021) .