Hydrocarbon (Elaterite)

specimen number:
2062889

location:
Windy Knoll Mine, Castleton, Derbyshire, England, UK

description:
A black tubelike specimen of what is known as elaterite, which is basically hydrocarbon.

Windy Knoll Mine near Castleton, Derbyshire, England, is set within a complex geological framework of carboniferous limestone and paleokarst surfaces historically worked for lead and associated vein minerals. The site is globally renowned for deposits of elaterite, also known as elastic bitumen or mineral caoutchouc, which is a dark brown, rubber-like hydrocarbon that formed from ancient petroleum migration trapped against impermeable regional shale boundaries. While miners historically encountered these sticky or brittle organic masses while working the local veins, mineral collectors and geologists have long studied the locality for its unique combination of residual petroleum deposits, fluorite-rich veins, and fossiliferous fissure deposits.

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