Description

Detailed Description

A good-sized branching copper specimen with distinct crystals and sculptural form. Some of the crystals are quite sharp, and there is a spinel-twinned crystal in the middle (about 5mm). There is a black patina with some iridescence – perhaps chalcocite.  A great native copper specimen for the price!

About these Rocklands Mine Copper Specimens

Copper was discovered in the area of present-day Cloncurry in the late 1860s, and many mines have been operated in the district since then. This a semi-arid and hot region, with temperatures sometimes exceeding 50C – these are tough prospecting and collecting conditions! The Rocklands Mine was a relatively recent producer, with the first operations beginning in 2005. It was an open pit operation that exploited a significant sulphide zone and a much smaller oxide zone. These copper specimens were collected during a specimen recovery project in the oxide zone from August to October, 2017. The Rocklands Mine is no longer in operation.