Detailed information
Dimensions
24 x 35 x 50
mm
Weight
30 g
Locality
Mother Lode Belt Mariposa Co. California, USA
Condition
No recorded repairs
Renowned for 'bonanza'-style gold deposits, the famous Mother Lode Belt which runs for about 120 miles roughly north-south through central California was the scene of the famous Californian gold rush between 1848 and 1855. Although not provenanced to a specific individual mine this extremely rich Native Gold specimen stands out for its magnificent presentation of the classic 'bonanza'-style gold ore, something rarely seen in gold deposits worldwide. Miniature in size, but standing out extremely well, classic tectonically fractured milky Quartz is seemingly held together with leaves of bright metallic golden-yellow Native Gold. A little crystallized Pyrite in the form of golden cubic crystals is seen in between the Quartz crystals too and shows nicely the difference in colour between golden Pyrite and yellow Native Gold. Weighing 30 g, I would estimate that with the density of gold metal approximately 20 g of this piece is Native Gold, but this is in no way scientific.
