Pyromorphite (classic material) (great pedigree)

Item Description

A beautiful and rarely seen Pyromorphite specimen from Broken Hill. The piece was mined many decades ago, and is one of the best examples of the species that we've had to offer from this historic and prolific locality. The style and color somewhat reminds me of the old German classics from the Friedrichssegen Mine (Bad Ems) in Germany, but the Broken Hill pieces have a slightly darker color with a slight reddish overtone. This piece is filled with beautiful, sharp, lustrous, prismatic crystal cluster of hexagonal Pyromorphite, which can be seen covering all sides of the underlying matrix. It's difficult to isolate an individual crystal to measure it, but I can say that there are several crystals well over 1 cm long. Minimal damage can be seen, and the piece is displayable from several angles. Matrix specimens of Pyromorphite in this size range are rather difficult to find on the market these days from Broken Hill, and these are certainly some of the finest and most well-known examples of the species from any world locality. This piece comes with a label from the collection of R. W. S. Doo, who obtained in from the great Albert Chapman in 1953. I think many people would agree that Chapman assembled the greatest private collection of Australian minerals in history. The piece originally came from Albert (Flossie) Campbell, who was a safety mine inspector for the Workers Industrial Union of Australia at Broken Hill. A fantastic small cabinet display specimen with excellent pedigree, and we have it valued at $3,000 retail in our inventory.