Chalcocite with Calcite

specimen number:
9505443

location:
Tonglushan Mine, Daye Co., Huangshi, Hubei, China

description:

Outstanding example for this species from this mining complex. A grouping of bladed metallic chalcocite crystals to 2.1 cm across standing up from a matrix coated by crystallized calcite. Micro-chipping present but very sparse and tiny, I think that this is in great condition.

The Tonglushan Mine in Daye, Hubei, China, is a renowned porphyry-skarn copper, iron, and gold deposit situated within the Middle-Lower Yangtze River metallogenic belt. Its geology features Early Cretaceous quartz monzodiorite to quartz-diorite intrusions that invaded Lower Triassic carbonate rocks, resulting in extensive skarn alteration and high-grade copper oxide zones rich in malachite, azurite, and chalcopyrite. Historically, the ancient workings at Tonglushan opened around the Shang or Western Zhou Dynasty (approximately from the 11th century BC) and remained active through the Han Dynasty before eventually closing in antiquity. The ancient site was famously rediscovered during modern open-pit mining operations in 1973, and while parts of the historic complex are now preserved as an archaeological museum, modern industrial mining operations by state enterprises continue in the surrounding district today.

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