Detailed information
Species
Stottite, Zincostottite
Dimensions
14 x 14 x 12
mm
Weight
5 g
Locality
Tsumeb Mine Tsumeb, Oshikoto Region Namibia
Condition
No recorded repairs
This small thumbnail from Tsumeb mine is a bit of a mystery, but a fascinating one at that. It is labelled as Stottite, but is not obviously Stottite in terms of crystal form. However, there is far more intrigue to it. It has lots of previous labels and can be traced back to at least 1991, when German systematic collector Dr Hans-Jurgen Wilke (1925-2014) purchased it from Vandall T. King's collection. King's label actually records it as "Zinc Stottite" and the following owners all mentioned it as "Zinkstottit". It now turns out that Zincostottite has been proposed as a new species - the zinc analogue of Stottite - and looks quite different to Stottite. This small thumbnail comprises heavily oxidized vein material, similar in appearance to Anglesite, but that is no guide at Tsumeb. On top of this are several colourless to frosted, well-formed 1.5 mm wide, rhombic or orthorhombic crystals, which could be Anglesite, Smithsonite, or something else? Could this be from the original occurrence of this new species? Someone obviously viewed it as distinct from Stottite all those years ago.