Natural History, including Gorgosaurus
Natural History, including Gorgosaurus
Malachite and Cuprite
Auction Closed
July 28, 03:27 PM GMT
Estimate
4,000 - 5,000 USD
Lot Details
Description
Malachite and Cuprite
Mashamba West Mine, Kolwezi, Katanga Copper Crescent, Katanga (Shaba), Democratic Republic of the Congo
3½ by 3⅕ by 2⅕ inches (8.9 x 8.1 x 5.6 cm). Custom lucite base.
A large and complete crystal of cuprite pseudomorphing into malachite that has been split in half to reveal the deep blood red color while maintaining the outer shape of the cuprite crystal.
Ranging from light to deep, rich greens, malachite is an opaque and banded copper carbonate hydroxide that often forms stalagmitic and/or botryoidal ("bunch of grapes") masses. The split specimen offered here is an amazing example of geology frozen in action, highlighting the brilliant and colorful pseudomorph of cuprite into malachite.