Fluorite with Sphalerite

specimen number:
9892162

location:
Elmwood complex, Smith Co., Tennessee, USA

description:
A matrix of lustrous black sphalerite crystals measuring to 2.0 cm in size, this hosting dark purple lustrous mostly gemmy cubic crystals of fluorite to 1.5 cm in size. One of the fluorite crystals is slightly cleaved on a face on the backside of the piece only. Overall in good condition.

The Elmwood complex, comprising primarily of the Elmwood, Gordonsville, and Cumberland Mines, in Smith County, Tennessee, is situated within Paleozoic carbonate rock formations where mineralizing hydrothermal brines circulated through ancient, open solution cavities, faults, and breccia zones. Originally developed for industrial underground mining starting in the 1970s, the facility gained global renown among mineral collectors because miners recovered world-class crystal specimens from vugs and cavities intersected during operations. While the complex has experienced intermittent commercial closures and changes in corporate ownership over the decades, it remains a legendary locality celebrated for producing some of the finest aesthetic mineral crystals ever discovered.

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