Barite

specimen number:
2063483

location:
Linwood Mine, Scott Co., Iowa, USA

description:
From around 2012-2013, very choice glassy gem quality sharp crystals of barite in a cluster with little attached matrix. This appears to have a fossil on the bottom side that has been replaced by calcite. This is shown in the video. In super condition. The specimen comes with a previous label from the collection of Ray DeMark.

Located along the Mississippi River in Scott County, Iowa, the Linwood Mine operates within Middle Devonian sedimentary limestone and dolomite formations of the Cedar Valley Group. Underground quarrying operations have extracted crushed limestone and aggregate for industrial use for decades, exposing extensive paleokarst cavities and hydrothermal vugs. These mineralized pockets contain aesthetic assemblies of secondary minerals, notably high-quality barite crystals ranging from clear to amber and blue, often associated with calcite, pyrite, and marcasite. Thanks to cooperative arrangements between quarry management and local mineral clubs, collector access to freshly opened cavities produced world-class barite specimens that remain prized in Midwestern mineral collections.

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