Sphalerite

specimen number:
2062423

location:
Smallcleugh Mine, Nenthead, Alston Moor, Cumbria, England, UK

description:
Lustrous black crystals of sphalerite across the top of matrix. In good condition. Nice for this classic British locality.

Smallcleugh Mine, located in Nenthead on Alston Moor, Cumbria, has an extensive history with driving of its principal access, the Smallcleugh Horse Level, beginning around 1770 and major commercial development commencing under the London Lead Company around 1787. It became renowned for its rich lead and zinc deposits before underground extraction largely ended in the early twentieth century, though surface dumps were later reprocessed during World War II, and the wider Nenthead mines finally ceased operations in 1961. Geologically, the mine is situated within the Northern Pennine orefield, where primary mineralization and extensive flat-type ore deposits are hosted predominantly within the Carboniferous Great Limestone sequence, cut by productive ENE-striking veins containing galena, sphalerite, and associated gangue minerals.

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