Quartz

specimen number:
2063529

location:
Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada

description:
A loose grouping of two glassy gemmy purple to red lustrous quartz crystals, the variety often called amethyst. Crystallized naturally all around and in great condition. Choice miniature. The specimen comes with a previous label from the collection of Ray DeMark. He collected the piece in 1967, at a mine located about 10 miles north of Port Arthur.

Situated along the north shore of Lake Superior in Ontario, Canada, the Thunder Bay region features Mesoproterozoic quartz vein systems deposited in faulted host rocks of the Sibley Group and Gunflint Formation over one billion years ago. Regional faulting created open fractures where silica-rich fluids crystallized into abundant quartz, while micro-trace amounts of iron combined with natural background radiation imparted the signature deep purple, red, and brownish phantom hues characteristic of Thunder Bay amethyst. Early indigenous peoples recognized and utilized local quartz resources, but modern mineral exploitation developed during the mid-twentieth century when commercial quarrying exposed massive hematite-included amethyst pockets, leading to dedicated mining operations such as the famous Diamond Willow and Panorama mines. Today, the area remains world-renowned among collectors and lapidaries for its distinctive hematite-capped purple crystals, with several active mines catering to specimen recovery, lapidary production, and seasonal rockhounding tourism.

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