Chalcostibite with Bournonite, Dolomite

specimen number:
2354114

location:
Boldut Mine, Cavnic, Maramures Co., Romania

description:
The top of this matrix is mostly covered with lustrous metallic crystals of chalcostibite to 0.3 cm in size. Minor bournonite present, as well as crystallized dolomite. In great condition, an excellent richly crystallized example for the species. The specimen comes with a previous label from the collection of Eric Laskowski.

The Boldut Mine in Cavnic, located within Maramures County, Romania, is a renowned hydrothermal base-metal deposit set within the Gutai Mountains, where Miocene volcanic activity generated complex lead-zinc-copper polymetallic vein systems hosted in propylitized volcanic rocks. Underground mining in the Cavnic area stretches back to medieval times, expanding significantly during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries as miners extracted valuable lead, zinc, copper, silver, and gold ores. The mine became celebrated among mineral collectors worldwide for producing exceptional crystallised specimens of quartz, rhodochrosite, and diverse sulfosalts within hydrothermal vugs and cavities. Among these species is chalcostibite, a rare copper antimony sulfide mineral that forms dark lead-gray to iron-black metallic prismatic crystals and blade-like aggregates in association with other copper-bearing minerals, making samples from Cavnic highly prized in museum and private mineral collections.

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