Fluorite

specimen number:
2312063

location:
Denton Mine, Hardin Co., Illinois, USA

description:
Gorgeous sharp gemmy Amber took purple cubic crystals of fluorite, the largest almost 5.0 cm on edge, in a cluster with minor chalcopyrite. The specimen comes with a previous label from the collection of Roy Smith. This is in super condition. Attractive when backlit as shown in the video.

The Denton Mine, located in Hardin County, Illinois, is situated within the famous Illinois-Kentucky Fluorspar District, a major Mississippi Valley-Type mineralized region. The geology of the area is characterized by Paleozoic sedimentary rocks, primarily faulted limestones and shales, which were intruded by late Cretaceous ultramafic dikes. Mineralization occurred when warm, fluorine-rich and metal-bearing hydrothermal fluids circulated through tectonic faults and fractures, depositing massive and crystalline fluorite alongside accessory minerals. Commercial mining operations in the district ramped up during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries to supply essential flux for the steel industry. Although active commercial extraction has largely ceased, the Denton Mine underground workings became internationally renowned among mineral collectors for producing magnificent specimens of fluorite, chalcopyrite, calcite, and barite.

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