Detailed information
Species
Shattuckite, Calcite
Dimensions
65 x 100 x 45
mm
Weight
235 g
Locality
Tantara Mine, Shinkolobwe Katanga Copper Crescent Dem. Rep. of Congo
Condition
No recorded repairs
Delicate, pale powder-blue Shattuckite forms rich spherical sprays of acicular, feathery to felt-like crystals on a bed of Calcite from Tantara mine, near Shinkolobwe, Katanga Copper Crescent, Dem. Rep. of Congo. This small mine, operated by an opencut, is renowned as the source of some of the world's finest crystallized Shattuckite, many of which were found in 2013, although the mines history goes back nearly a century earlier. The sprays of this rare copper silicate hydroxide reach up to 2 cm in diameter, which is a good size, and most are in very good condition, but one spray is compacted down one side, possibly from where the spray was resting against the other side of a crystal pocket. Under magnification the felted texture of the Shattuckite sprays can really be appreciated, but what is also evident is that they are studded with deep blue blocky microcrystals. It is unclear if these are also Shattuckite, or perhaps the similar species Plancheite.