Torbernite (classic locality)

Item Description

Torbernite is a well-known Cu - U phosphate species, perhaps one of the most well-known U-bearing minerals ever found. This specimen is from the Margabal Mine in southwestern France, where some of the best examples of Torbernite have been found. The mine itself only operated from 1957-1960, but the listing on mindat.org states that in 1997, "some motivated collectors have managed to open a new entrance by digging a tunnel from the top of the mine". This resulted in the discovery of some excellent pieces of Torbernite and Metatorbernite that were quickly scooped up by collectors. This piece is an lovely thumbnail sized example of this material featuring "rose"-like groups comprising lovely green colored tetragonal bladed crystals, free of matrix. The largest crystal group measures 1.0 cm on edge. The piece is in good shape, with no major damage that I can see. If you collect thumbnails, this is something that I'll be you don't have in your collection, and it would make a great addition to any U-mineral suite. From the collection of William ("Bill") (1927-2006) and Anne (1928-2021) Cook of Cleveland, Ohio (#13296). This husband and wife duo were actively involved in the mineral world for many decades. Bill was a PhD geologist, and Anne was a mathematician, and they both were very serious mineral collectors. Bill served for many years as adjunct curator of mineralogy at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History, and Anne was inducted into the Micromounters' Hall of Fame on October 12, 2019. Both Bill and Anne, at various times, served as president both of the Mineralogical Society of Cleveland and of the Micromineral Society of the Cleveland Museum of Natural History, and Anne was inducted into the mi The rare barium lithium beryllium phosphate Wilancookite was named in their honor in 2015.