Galena with Fluorite, Sphalerite

specimen number:
2312455

location:
Hill-Ledford Mine, Hardin Co., Illinois, USA

description:

Interesting specimen showing somewhat rounded crystals of metallic galena to 1.0 cm in size on matrix with deep purple crystals of fluorite and minor sphalerite. Collected in the 1960s, this is in good condition. The specimen comes with several previous labels as shown at the end of the video.

The Hill-Ledford Mine, located within the renowned Cave-in-Rock sub-district of the Illinois-Kentucky Fluorspar District in Hardin County, Illinois, was an active underground mining operation that contributed significantly to the region's mid-20th-century commercial output. Geologically, the deposit sits within Mississippi-age sedimentary strata, where fluorine-bearing hydrothermal solutions migrated along fractures and faults, reacting with favorable limestone beds to form bedding-replacement and vein-type ore bodies. Mineralogically, the mine is celebrated by collectors worldwide for producing exceptional specimens of deep purple to violet fluorite cubes, often associated with gleaming metallic galena, sphalerite, and calcite.

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