Franklinite (classic material)

Item Description

Of the hundreds of minerals found in the Franklin Mining District, this is the one that has the honor of bearing its name. Even though Franklinite is well-known to East Coast collectors of the United States, it's still a fairly rare species around the world, and to this day, the best examples of this zinc iron oxide were found at Franklin. The iconic black octahedra are some of the most recognizable crystals from any US locality. This specimen features a good amount of jet-black, sharp octahedrons of Franklinite measuring up to 2.5 cm with minor off-white colored Calcite on the back. It should be noted that the vast majority of species from Franklin are notably small (micro), but Franklinite is one of the species that you can see with the naked eye. There is some damage on this one, it's not perfect, but it sits nicely on its own and is still a good overall example of this famous material from Franklin. From the collection of Richard ("Dick") Philip Hauck formerly of Bloomfield, New Jersey and now a resident of Franklin, New Jersey. Dick is an avid collector of minerals, books, and mining memorabilia, along with being an accomplished author in the mineral world. Arguably, his greatest claim to fame is being the co-founder of the Sterling Hill Mining Museum in Ogdensburg, NJ. Dick purchased the land on which the Sterling Hill Mine resides in 1988, and the museum has been running strong since.