Malachite with Quartz

specimen number:
2063825

location:
Mex-Tex Mine, Socorro Co., New Mexico, USA

description:
Green attractive crystal groupings of malachite measuring to 0.4 cm across scattered on top of a colorless glassy quartz crystal matrix. In good condition. Collected on May 20, 1979.

The Mex-Tex Mine, situated in the Hansonburg Mining District of Socorro County, New Mexico, is a classic American locality situated within low-temperature Mississippi Valley-type hydrothermal deposits. Active primarily during the mid-twentieth century for barite, fluorite, and galena, the mine became far more famous among mineral collectors for its exceptional secondary copper mineralization within oxidized vugs and fractures. Among these secondary species, spangolite stands out as a highly prized hydrated copper aluminum sulfate mineral that forms brilliant emerald-green to deep blue-green, well-developed tabular or pyramidal crystals. Although spangolite is generally rare worldwide, specimens from the Mex-Tex Mine are celebrated by collectors for their intense color contrast when micro-crystallized against pale matrix baryte or fluorite, making this site an iconic western U.S. mineral location.

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