Cyanotrichite

specimen number:
2062430

location:
Vieja Mine, Potrerillos, Chanaral, Atacama, Chile

description:
Beautiful example for the species, an open pocket 4.0 cm across his lined with brilliant blue acicular crystals of cyanotrichite. In super condition.

The Vieja Mine is located in the historic mining district of Potrerillos within the Chanaral Province of the Atacama Region of Chile, a major copper-producing area whose modern large-scale industrial operations began in the 1920s (with specific historical underground workings often experiencing active phases and intermittent closures throughout the mid-20th century alongside regional shifts). Geologically, the area is characterized by desert host rocks subjected to intense hydrothermal activity and deep supergene oxidation, creating favorable environments for secondary copper minerals. The mine is particularly renowned among mineral collectors as one of the world's premier localities for exceptional specimens of cyanotrichite, a delicate secondary phase that forms striking sky-blue or azure tufts, velvety crusts, and hair-like radial needle aggregates resulting from the weathering and oxidation of primary copper ores in the presence of aluminum and sulfate.

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