Description
Detailed Description
Beautiful radial sprays of dark, lustrous brown goethite crystals, with golden tips. Minor rubs at the periphery and on the back, but not distracting. An inreesting feature of this one is a pair of what I believe are negative casts where crystals of another mineral once were (hard to tell which!). The main goethite clusters on this one are particularly attractive.
About These Goethites
Although goethite is a common mineral, it is uncommon to find collection-worthy specimens of crystallized goethite.
These goethite specimens were recently found in one of the huge chamber pegmatites at Volodarsk (which have long been famous for fantastic beryls and huge topaz crystals, to go along with monster quartz crystals). Currently work at Volodarsk has been largely curtailed and it is not clear whether any significant further work will be economically feasible. Prior to discontinuing most operations, the mining workings intersected a pocket which contained these radial sprays of goethite. I acquired them from the person who mined them out before the water table was allowed to submerge the pocket.
The detailed locality information for these (included on the label accompanying each specimen) is Pegmatite No. 597, Mine No. 3.
