Copper with Calcite

specimen number:
2063012

location:
Anamax Mine, Twin Buttes, Pima Co., Arizona, USA

description:
A small grouping of twinned native copper crystals 0.8 cm in length on a matrix mostly coated by crystallized calcite. The specimen comes with a previous label from the collection of Ray DeMark, who acquired the piece in 1973.

The geology of the Twin Buttes mining area features complex skarn-related deposits formed where Laramide-age intrusive rocks altered Paleozoic limestone and sedimentary strata, all concealed beneath hundreds of feet of post-mineral alluvium. Mining history in the district dates back to prospectors working small surface oxide outcrops in the late 19th century. Underground and small-scale operations eventually evolved into massive industrial open-pit extraction during the mid-to-late 20th century. Major modern production began under corporate ventures like the Anamax Mining Company, which conducted massive preproduction stripping programs to recover substantial copper, molybdenum, and associated byproducts before operations ultimately ceased.

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