Chalcopyrite

The Alice Mine is one of the most classic of all the Colorado localities for Chalcopyrite. It is renowned for its superb Chalcopyrite specimens, exhibiting some of the finest twins for the species extant. The Chalcopyrites from this mine are a staple of any good Colorado mineral collection.

This specimen features good sized, sharp, metallic, brassy-gold colored twinned crystals of Chalcopyrite coated by micro epitaxial cubic Galena(?), as there is already associated Sphalerite on the reverse side that looks quite different from what’s on the front of the piece. Possibly the coating could be one of the several Bismuth sulfides reported from this mine, but without testing, it’s difficult to know for certain. The specimen is nearly 100% complete, with just a minor contact on the back – both ends are crystallized! - and still displays well from the front. These specimens are almost impossible to obtain these days and are regarded among Colorado collectors as some of the best from the state. Well worth picking up for anybody interested in these beauties.

Specimen# CO712B17