Spinel

specimen number:
2354196

location:
Lime Crest Quarry, Sparta, New Jersey

description:
Black crystals and partial crystals of spinel throughout this calcite matrix, these measuring to 0.5 cm in size. The specimen comes with a previous label from the collection of Jack Nieburger.

Located in Sussex County, New Jersey, the Lime Crest Quarry is a famous industrial operation that works the Precambrian Franklin Marble, a coarsely crystalline metamorphic limestone formed over one billion years ago. The site underwent severe regional metamorphism that caused heavy recrystallization and chemical interaction between carbonate host rocks and igneous intrusions, giving rise to localized skarn-type mineral deposits within the marble matrix. Beyond massive limestone extraction for industrial, agricultural, and construction uses since the early twentieth century, the quarry gained fame among mineral collectors and researchers for yielding exceptional fluorescent and rare minerals. Among its most sought-after finds are well-formed crystals of dark purple to reddish-black spinel, which occur embedded in sparkling white calcite along with chondrodite, graphite, and pyroxene.

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