Claringbullite (very rare) on Cuprite

Item Description

Here we have a specimen featuring, Claringbullite is a very rare copper hydroxyhalide species, which was named after the former Keeper of Mineralogy of the British Museum, Gordon F. Claringbull. It has been found in just over a dozen localities on earth. The co-type localities for the species are The M'sesa Mine in DR Congo and the Nchanga Mine in Zambia, but those pieces were mined a few decades ago. Recently there were some beautiful contemporary species found at the famous Ojuela Mine in Mexico, and this piece is a great example. It features attractive rich blue color platy micro crystals of Claringbullite, sitting on dark reddish-black massive Cuprite matrix, and partially coated by a thin layer of very dark green Malachite which transitions into a much lighter minty green color on the surface. If you collect rare minerals, this is a great chance to get your hands of something that is quite difficult to find on the market today from one o the great mineral localities, not only in Mexico, but North America.
From the collection Dr. Robert ("Rob") Bowell, a geochemist and adjunct professor in Geochemistry and Mineralogy at Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada. Rob has a background in applied geology in tropical and deeply weathered terrains, he also has done mining consulting in the fields of due diligence, financial and technical audits, process chemistry, environmental geochemistry, environmental engineering and mineralogy.