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PAS-24 – Sulvanite - $900 (SOLD) Mercur District (Camp Floyd District), Oquirrh Mts, Tooele Co., Utah SMALL CABINET, 5.6 x 4.2 x 2.1 cm
Sulvanite is a very rare copper vanadium sulfide which rarely forms nice large crystals. Here , we have sharp crystals to 6mm on nicely contrasting matrix of quartz. I hav enever seen crystals so big, but more importantly I amtold by those who do study such minerals, that these are VERY large or the species, and unusually well-isolated for display. An important locality specimen but beyond that, a super sulvanite for any locale.
PAS-25 – Bismuth ore from Wyoming Territory! - $100 (SOLD) near Laramie, Wyoming SMALL CABINET, 8.3 x 6.3 x 3.8 cm
A shockingly HEAVY specimen which surprises you when you lift it - heavier than lead by far. This is probably massive bismuth ore, with some oxidation coating of a green mineral atop.
PAS-26 – Sphalerite - $200 Lane Traprock quarries, Westfield, Hampden Co., Massachusetts SMALL CABIENT, 8.8 x 5.8 x 5.4 cm
A sharp, lustrous, translucent sphalerite crystal with a golden-green hue to it, perched in classic Westfield matrix of quartz and prehnite. Sphalerite is rare for this locality and this is a beautiful specimen, as well.
PAS-27 – Fairfieldite - $400 (SOLD) Abija N. Fillow Quarry (Branchville Quarry), Branchville, Redding, Fairfield Co., Connecticut (TYPE LOCALITY) miniature, 5.2 x 4.8 x 3.4 cm
An oddly lightweight specimen of fairfieldite - a rare phosphate known in larger crystals now from other locales. BUT, this IS the Type Locality (in 1879) for this important rarity so its worth acquiring for that reason primarily. From the noted collection of William Drown, whom according to the Mineralogical Record Archive on him was an umbrella manufacturer who used his fortune to amass a collection of some 6000 mineral specimens. His collection was kept by his family for a generation after his death and then donated in 1918 .
PAS-28 – Jamesonite - $50 (SOLD) Nevada SMALL CABINET, 7.5 x 5.4 x 4.1 cm
For the jamesonite locality collectors out there, a hefty nugget of solid jamesonite from an unlikely locale! From the noted collection of William Drown, whom according to the Mineralogical Record Archive on him was an umbrella manufacturer who used his fortune to amass a collection of some 6000 mineral specimens. His collection was kept by his family for a generation after his death and then donated in 1918 .
PAS-30 – Smithsonite ps. Calcite - $150 Mineral Point, Iowa Co., Wisconsin SMALL CABINET, 6.7 x 4.1 x 2.2 cm
A locality specimen from this classic Wisconsin locality circa mid-1800s , in all likelihood. This is a pseudomorph of Smithsonite (not hydrozincite), having replaced calcite crystals. Most pseudos from here are of the heftier species smithsonite, as this one is, and I have seen many others of them from old collections.
PAS-31 – Clinochlore var. Corundophilite - $200 (SOLD) Chester Emery Mines, Chester, Hampden Co., Massachusetts SMALL CABINET, 7.2 x 3.5 x 2.7 cm
Corundophilite is an antique name for a "friend of corundum" in occurrence, Iron rich clinochlore, now discredited as not a full species on its own merit. This specimen has a display face rich with embedded, flat-laying crystals of the material. A small bit of another purple mineral is associated. A very interesting historical deposit which, although it produced a lot of minerals, we apparently know very little about today now that it is long gone. See this interesting article on MINDAT for more information on the site , and on what we do not know about it. From the noted collection of William Drown, whom according to the Mineralogical Record Archive on him was an umbrella manufacturer who used his fortune to amass a collection of some 6000 mineral specimens. His collection was kept by his family for a generation after his death and then donated in 1918 .
PAS-32 – Gold with Pyrite - $200 Douglass Island, Alaska CABINET, 12.0 x 5.4 x 4.6 cm
A large specimen with rich sparkly pyrite, and perhaps some gold in it - frankly I am not sure I can tell the difference, its probably minute here, but the museum seems to have been sure of it and so I pass on without testng how much is brassy pyrite and how much is real gold (probably minimal)
PAS-33 – Tiemannite - $750 (SOLD) Marysvale District (Marysvale Uranium area), Piute Co., Utah Miniature, 5 x 5 x 3.9 cm
Tiemannite is a VERY rare mercury selenide: simply HgSe. This is the classic locality for crystals: tiny black modified tetrahedra. This specimen hosts a few VERY choice, sharp crystals, unusually free of alteration coatings, on matrix. The crysta;ls are small, under 2mm, but very sharp and eye-visible. Another vug, with smaller crystals, lays beneath them. One suspects the museum numbering person mislabelled the piece, not recognizing the material and putting the museum accession number on the display face!
PAS-34 – Uranophane pseudo. Uraninite - $300 Mina “Angel", Sierra de Cordoba, Punilla Department, Córdoba, Argentina miniature, 3.9 x 3.8 x 2.3 cm
Relatively sharp pseudomorphed crystals to about 1 cm, of Uranophane pseudo. Uraninite from this unusual location. Nice for the replacement from any locality, too!
PAS-36 – Muscovite with Magnetite inclusions - $1250 Chandler’s Hollow, Delaware CABINET, 32.0 x 22.9 x 0.2 cm
A dramatic, really interesting solid sheet of muscovite, the kind of sheet which 200 years ago might have been used for a window even. It has mesmerizing inclusions of magnetite within it.
PAS-37 – Petalite - $75 (SOLD) Bolton Quarry, Bolton, Worcester Co., Massachusetts CABINET, 9.8 x 9.1 x 5.2 cm
An old specimen of massive petalite from the famous collection of Charles Shephard. ex.Charles Shepherd Collection (1804-1886), whom according to the Mineralogical Record Archive on him was with Benjamin Silliman's staff at Yale in 1827, as his assistant, and later as a lecturer on natural history at Yale (1830-1847) and then Amherst College. His large collection was donated to the Smithsonian, but afew specimens apparently found their way into the Academy collection, perhaps through trades with colleagues in the Philadelphia area.
PAS-38 – Gibbsite - $600 (SOLD) Richmond, Berkshire Co., Massachusetts (TYPE LOCALITY) SMALL CABINET, 7.1 x 6.6 x 2.6 cm
TYPE LOCALITY - Gibbsite is an interesting aluminum hydroxide with very little heft to it, that otherwise tends to look like heavy smithsonite or hemimorphite at first glance. This is a large, showy specimen of gibbsite from the TYPE LOCALITY. According to MINDAT, this mineral was: named after Colonel George Gibbs (1777-1834), original owner of the Gibbs mineral collection acquired by Yale University early in the nineteenth century.
PAS-39 – Monazite-(Ce) in Sillimanite - $100 (SOLD) Yantic Falls, Norwich, New London Co., Connecticut SMALL CABINET, 8.1 x 6.0 x 2.8 cm
A rare locality piece of monazite, in sillimanite. The sharp crystal noted is 5 or 6mm and fully crystallized. From the noted colletion of Samuel Ashmead.
PAS-40 – Ilmenite (var. Manaccanite and Washingtonite) - $350 Washington, Litchfield Co., Connecticut SMALL CABINET, 7.2 x 5.7 x 3.7 cm
This specimen features several robust crystals of ilmenite, variously named Manaccanite and then renamed Washingtonite for the prominent locality at Washington, Litchfield Co., Connecticut. However, this is today considered to be an iron-rich variety of the species ilmenite rather than its own species . Sharp crystals to 2.7 cm wide and about 1 cm thick make this a relatively attractive, and quite good, US ilmenite specimen. From the noted collection of TB Wilson, whom according to the Mineralogical Record Archive on him joined the Academy of Natural Sciences in Philadelphia in 1832, and was the Academy's principal benefactor. His collection was donated upon his death in 1865 .
PAS-41 – Tungstite - $1750 (SOLD) San Antonio de Calacalani mine, Cercado Province, Oruro Department, Bolivia CABINET, 12.7 x 9.7 x 3.3 cm
A rich, showy, very fine specimen of this rare tungsten oxide hydroxide. Note that the location is our best guess translation of the label, based on published photos of tungstite from Bolivia from other collections such as Harvard.
PAS-42 – Zunyite - $400 Silver City, Tintic District, East Tintic Mts, Juab County, Utah Miniature, 5.5 x 5 x 3.5 cm
This strange silicate forms pyramid-shaped crystals that are sharp and unusual. Usually the species is gray to white in color from other locales but here show with brown-red color. This specimen is one of several obtained by breaking open a single larger vug donated to the museum in the early 1900s, and features many sharp crystals to 3 mm on all sides of the specimen. We obtained 2 specimens with 2 labels, as shown here and on item #44
PAS-44 – Zunyite - $750 Silver City, Tintic District, East Tintic Mts, Juab County, Utah SMALL CABINET, 8.3 x 5.5 x 3.9 cm
This strange silicate forms pyramid-shaped crystals that are sharp and unusual. Usually the species is gray to white in color from other locales but here show with brown-red color. This specimen is one of several obtained by breaking open a single larger vug donated to the museum in the early 1900s, and features many sharp crystals to 3 mm on all sides of the specimen. We obtained 2 specimens with 2 labels, as shown here and on item #42
PAS-43 – Yttrocerite - $150 (SOLD) Rockport Granite Company quarry, Rockport, Essex Co., Massachusetts SMALL CABINET, 6.9 x 3.7 x 1.8 cm
Yttrocerite is an odd blue/purpley calcium fluoride withyttrium and cerium. In other words, it is weird chemistry and here shows as purple splotches (but richly so!). Mindat lists yttrocerite from this locality as tentative/unverified but reported. Well, apparently we finally have a piece pretty solidly linked to the quarry as I am sure the person owning this at the time would have known better than us today, over 100 years later.
PAS-45 – Bismutite - $100 (SOLD) Portland, Middlesex Co., Connecticut SMALL CABINET, 5.7 x 4.7 x 2.6 cm
Bismutite is a rare BISMUTH ANHYDROUS CARBONATE. Although not crystallized as well as European material, this is an interesting specimen of acrystalline bismutite (yellow material at top-left) atop forming on top of the beryl var. aquamarine.
PAS-46 – Aramayoite - $1250 (SOLD) Animas Mine, Atocha-Quechisla District, Sud Chichas Province, Potosí Department, Bolivia (TYPE LOCALITY) SMALL CABINET, 6.6 x 5.0 x 2.9 cm
Aramayoite is a very rare silver sulfide species containing tin, and bismuth. This is material fro mthe type locality from which it was described in 1926 , collected only a few years later in 1929-1930 on the fourth Vaux-family-sponsored mineralogical expedition to South America. This is a rich sample of silver and tin ore which has a vug of pocket crystals and also exposed, flay-laying embedded crystals of aramayoite to 8mm which show mettalic, mirror-like faces on the upper-right part of the specimen.
PAS-47 – Aramayoite - $250 (SOLD) Animas Mine, Atocha-Quechisla District, Sud Chichas Province, Potosí Department, Bolivia (TYPE LOCALITY) CABINET, 10.6 x 6.2 x 3.3 cm
Aramayoite is a very rare silver sulfide species containing tin, and bismuth. This is material fro mthe type locality from which it was described in 1926 , collected only a few years later in 1929-1930 on the fourth Vaux-family-sponosred mineralogical expedition to South America. This is a rich sample of silver and tin ore which has a vug of pocket crystals (microcrystals, sub-mm druse) and also exposed, flay-laying embedded crystals of aramayoite to 4mm which show mettalic, mirror-like faces on the upper-right part of the specimen.
PAS-48– Barite - $1800 Cheshire, New Haven Co., Connecticut CABINET, 23.5 x 14.1 x 3.3 cm
This is one of the largest Cheshire barites I have personally seen in anything resembling good form, to survive from the mid to late 1800s era of mining here. Apparently the deposit was quite rich in barite, but I cannot imagine based on the survivors I have seen that such a large piece as this was very common in good form. And, remarkably, it IS largely intact, and has made it through unrepaired. There is some edge wear, of course, along the left edge and at the rear of the termination - but it displays very well nonetheless and I think in context those bruises are minor. The right side is naturally rough, due to contacted faces which seem to be terminated and not broken. To emphasize that fact, I have not cleaned the piece and in fact it still has original pocket clay material adhering to that side to prove there are no clean breaks during or after mining. It really seems microcrystallized or contacted but terminated, all around - even on the bottom. A historic, remarkable specimen of barite from one of the early USA's more important mining locales! Thank you to James Zigras, who found in an old pamphlet published by the Chesire Historical Society the following information: the exact locale is the JINNY HILL MINE and it operated from 1838-1877. The first barite mine in the US , it was mined for the manufacture of paints in NYC. It was discovered by Benjamin Silliman (of Yale) and noted by him in 1813. He claims the mine was named for "an elderly negress who lived in that area." The vein was followed for a depth of 480 feet and several miles of tunnel were mined. At its height of production in the mid-1800s, it employed 200 people.
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