Margarite
specimen number:
2351027
location:
Chester Emery Mines, Hampden Co., Massachusetts, USA
description: The Chester Emery Mines in Hampden County, Massachusetts, are located along a metamorphic rock belt where intense geological alteration produced a four-mile mineralized vein. Originally opened in 1856 to mine iron, the site became the first major emery producer in America after geologist Charles T. Jackson identified the presence of margarite, a brittle calcium mica, as a key indicator of the abrasive deposit in 1864. Mineral collectors and miners frequently targeted the area for its rich assemblage of unusual minerals, with margarite often forming attractive pink or pearlescent crystals and veins embedded in local schist.
Rich pink micaceous margarite throughout matrix. The specimen comes with a previous label from the collection of Jack Nieburger.
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