John Nash's Photo Gallery

MYE-L6NCalcite CaCO₃

José María Patoni, San Juan del Río Municipality, Durango, Mexico

Dimensions: 10 cm x 8 cm x 8 cm

Several butterfly twins, plus small versions of the elongated type of crystals.

K85-3V2Calcite CaCO₃

Madawaska Mine, Faraday Township, Hastings County, Ontario, Canada

Dimensions: 11 cm x 7.5 cm x 5.5 cm
Field of View: 13 cm
Largest Crystal Size: 8 cm

Another of the truly unique calcites from this mine. This one has the strangest etching or deposition pattern - look at the close-up.

MC0-ELDBaryte BaSO₄

Jbel Aouam, El Hammam Caïdat, Aguelmous Cercle, Khénifra Province, Béni Mellal-Khénifra Region, Morocco

Dimensions: 12 cm x 12 cm x 12 cm
Field of View: 15 cm
Largest Crystal Size: 12 cm

Two giant, tabular crystals intersect each other. Their surfaces are glassy and the interiors have gemmy and translucent regions. The larger crystal is 12 X 8 cm and 2.5 cm thick. The specimen is incredibly three-dimensional (and very hard to photograph). I was told this came from M'hrit - Aouam, Jebel area, northeast of Khenifra. This mining area has occasionally produced large colorless barite, but this is out-sized even for the area.

PJW-KEECalcite CaCO₃ , Hematite Fe₂O₃

Madawaska Mine, Faraday Township, Hastings County, Ontario, Canada

Dimensions: 8 cm x 8 cm x 5.5 cm
Weight: 326 g

This unusual twinned specimen is partially coated with hematite, but remains very transparent; it fairly glows with minimal backlighting! Look at the other views to see this.

U1J-EYTCalcite CaCO₃

Mid-Continent Mine, Treece, Picher Field, Cherokee County, Kansas, USA

The specimen has a cluster of gemmy, yellow calcite crystals on top of a limetone breccia. The main crystal is a very translucent - largely transparent - doubly terminated scalenohedral twin. It sits suspended above the matrix by several centimeters, with a small amount of matrix behind it that can't be seen from the front. This is a remarkable display specimen, rivaling the finest Elmwood calcites. Overall, the specimen is 18 X 10 X 5.5 cm; the main calcite crystal is 8.5 X 3.5 cm.

N7R-DUXCalcite (Var: Manganese-bearing Calcite) (Ca,Mn)CO₃

Trepča Stari Trg Mine, Trepča complex, Mitrovica, Mitrovica District, Kosovo

Ex-Peter Maurer Collection; ex-Giovanni Signorelli Collection. This is a very fine manganoan calcite from the Trepca mine. It fluoresces red, proving manganese content. It is a light pink group of pseudo-hexagonal crystals, each about 1.5 cm thick and about 9.5 X 8.5 X 3.5 overall. The primary crystals are faced with hundreds of small, flattened rhombs. This is remeniscent of fine Dal'negorsk calcite and is the best example of this hexagonal form from Trepca I've seen for sale. The Trepca mines have a long history, back to 1303, producing lead, zinc, silver and a range of trace metals including uranium. The mining complex is no doubt part of the reason, maybe a big part, for the centuries of fighting in the region. The original mining is a huge open pit; in modern times work has gone underground. There are estimated reserves that would support 50 more years of intensive underground mining. What a great specimen from a historic mine.

0VR-4U7Calcite (Var: Manganese-bearing Calcite) (Ca,Mn)CO₃ , Sphalerite ZnS

2nd Sovetskii Mine, Partizanskoe Pb-Zn deposit, Dalnegorsk, Dalnegorsk Urban District, Primorsky Krai, Russia

An incredibly unique manganoan calcite on sphalerite specimen, made extraordinary by the fact of the calcite epimorphing a huge, flat-topped sphalerite crystal. The calcite has formed coatings and large and small curved blades. The blades are assembled of thousands of small, flattened rhombic calcite crystals. The large flat-topped sphalerite measures about 5.5 cm high and 8.5 cm across at its base, 5 cm at the top. The whole specimen is about 20 X 11.5 X 12.5 cm. Pristine and undamaged, the specimen is truly remarkable, another reminder of what amazing things happened at Dal'negork.

86W-KXJFluorite CaF₂ , Baryte BaSO₄

Dorion Amethyst Mine, Mineral Lot A, McTavish Township, Thunder Bay District, Ontario, Canada

A large specimen of brilliant yellow fluorite with barite on quartz. The clarity and color of the fluorite is unusually good for yellow fluorite from anywhere, and this is a very rare locale. 12 X 10 X 6 cm., it is another dazzling specimen from a largely unknown (and now closed) locality.

TGT-9C3Baryte BaSO₄ , Fluorite CaF₂

Dorion Amethyst Mine, Mineral Lot A, McTavish Township, Thunder Bay District, Ontario, Canada

Nice miniature, 5 X 4 X 3 cm, very well crystallized, flesh colored barite, 5 mm very pale yellow fluorite cubes. Found by Greg and John, July, 2004 in the main quarry, 48° 41' 41.41" N 88° 35' 1.18" W

KTW-GGCNatrolite Na₂Al₂Si₃O₁₀·2H₂O , Corrensite (Mg,Fe)₉((Si,Al)₈O₂₀)(OH)₁₀·nH₂O

Kibblehouse Quarry, Perkiomenville, Marlborough Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, USA

Interesting 11 X 7 X 4 cm specimen of natrolite (peach) overgrown by a last white layer of white natrolite and corrensite nodules.