Copper (rare locality specimen)

Item Description

A rarely seen specimen of Copper from the Girilambone Copper Mine in New South Wales, Australia. This piece is a solid group of branching crystalline Copper, showing a deeply colored patina on the surface, with a bit of oxidation resulting in minor minty green colored Malachite. This locality is a large heap leaching operation (where percolating chemical solutions are used to leach out metals), and actual specimens are typically not easy to obtain on the market. This is the first piece I can remember having to offer from this locality, so if you collect native elements, worldwide Coppers or Australian minerals, don't miss out.
From the collection of Daniel ("Dan") W. Behnke (July 31, 1932 - January 20, 2020) of Glenview, Illinois. Dan was an Associate Photographer of both the Mineralogical Record and Rock and Minerals magazines. He served as the Micromount chairman of the Midwest Federation of Mineralogical Societies from 1981 to 1988. He was elected to the National Board of Directors of the Friends of Mineralogy in 1989, and the Micromounters Hall of Fame in 2007. He was a beloved member of the mineral collecting community, most notably for his supreme skill at photomicrography. If you've ever seen any of Dan's micro photos on mindat.org, it's easy to see why he was one of the best in this field. You can read his obituary at https://www.nhscotthanekamp.com/obituaries/Daniel-W-Behnke?obId=10633628