Ludlamite on Pyrite (uncommon locale)

Item Description

When people think of ludlamite from Bolivia, they inherently think of the famous Huanuni Mine. In recent years, the Colavi Mine has produced some interesting and uniquel ludlamites that are very different from the specimens from Huanuni. Originally we were told that these ludlamites were coming out of the Canutillos Mine, and/or the Estano Orcko Mine, which are neighbors to the Colavi Mine, and often these mines are interconnected underground anyway, so it's hard to determine where one mine stops and another starts. This large and impressive piece is an excellent and very rich specimen of this remarkably rare iron phosphate consisting of sharply terminated, translucent, beautiful mint-green, monoclinic crystals of ludlamite resting on splendent brass-yellow pyrite cubes. The matrix is massive pyrite with some sphalerite on one edge. The largest ludlamite crystals measure to about 1.0 cm across and many are doubly terminated. There is a bash to the lower center of the pyrite field, but the ludlamite field is uneffected. Very rich, large, showy and uncommon combination material from this find. Hefty at 1106 grams or 2.4 pounds.