Smithsonite

Item Description

A nice, attractive specimen featuring silvery modified rhombic crystals of Smithsonite associated with rich green Cuprian Adamite on Limonite matrix. Despite the smaller size of the crystals, the quality is excellent up close. Obviously, the crystals are best seen under higher magnification, and we photographed them with a Canon MP-E 65 mm macro lens to better illustrate their quality. If you collect minerals from Lavrion (Laurion), don't miss out on this one, as they are not seen on the market these days. This particular piece was not recently collected, but came from a find from over 10 years ago. The famous mines around this historic district have produced some of the most well known and distinctive minerals from any European locality. Mining took place around this area as far back as the Bronze Age as analysis of ancient isotopes of lead in the objects from that time indicate they were manufactured, in large part, with metal from the Laurion.