Calcite with Chalcopyrite

Item Description

An attractive piece from the famed Naica Mine featuring white chalky rhombs of Calcite, which play host to little well-formed Chalcopyrite crystals. Ordinarily Chalcopyrite is a metallic brassy color (sometimes with multi-color iridescence on the surface), but these crystals have been oxidized so they're mostly black. Under magnification, you can see a tiny bit of rainbow / peacock colored iridescence on the Chalcopyrites. The piece is crystallized all over, with only one point of attachment/contact on one corner. From the worldwide mineral collection of Albert Lewis Kidwell (January 1, 1919 - August 16, 2008). Al was a well-known mineral collector and research geologist with Carter Oil Company and later Exxon Oil Company in Houston, Texas. The phosphate species Kidwellite was named in his honor in 1974 ( https://www.mindat.org/photo-326405.html ).