Paravauxite with Vauxite (very rare)

Item Description

The historic and world famous Siglo XX Mine is the source of some stellar phosphate species, most especially Vauxite and Paravauxite. While both minerals are synonymous with this mine, the two minerals are not always seen together. It should be noted that the Siglo XX Mine is the only place in the world where both species have been found together, and it just so happens to be the type locality for both species as well. Good specimens of Paravauxite and Vauxite are highly prized for their rarity and beauty. Here we have a decent toenail specimen featuring incredibly rare, sharp, lustrous, translucent, light green crystals of Paravauxite in semi-"pinwheel"-esque formations with individual crystals measuring up to around 1.2 cm and associated with a few spots of blue Vauxite on minor white Allophane matrix. Fairly good quality up close, and the color combination is wonderful. In the book "Mineralogy of Llallagua, Bolivia" by Mark Chance Bandy, he described Paravauxite as the most abundant of all the "Vauxites" from this mine,". With that said, you almost never see specimens available on the market, especially with the Vauxite association. It should be noted that this piece is a good example of the prismatic, sheaf-like crystals that Mr. Bandy originally described for Paravauxite, although the piece was actually discovered decades later.