Parisite-(Ce) : CaCe2(CO3)3F2, Synchysite-(Ce) : CaCe(CO3)2F
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This is a strange specimen.
The pink spray looks similar to some forms of rémondite-(Ce) (e.g. http://www.mindat.org/photo-185071.html ). But there is little or no REE absorption and higher magnification reveals acicular white xls coated by orangey grains. The grains effervesce vigorously in HCl leaving behind an unidentified white mineral.
Initially posted as "rhodochrosite", but the effervescence is much too vigorous for that. So then it was posted as "calcite". Recent qualitative scans - and a more careful look - indicate that it is more complicated than that. For one thing, the vigorous effervescence is fairly brief. Most of the pink stuff vanishes fairly quickly. Some deep orange parts more slowly. But the thin white needles appear to be for the most part inert.
The careful look reveals there is ilmenite (verified on another specimen from the same find) and burbankite. That indicates that this is probably some sort of "miarolitic cavity". But the EDS scans reveal that REE is present in abundance in both the pink stuff and the underlying white prisms. The pattern for the pink stuff is a good fit for parisite-(Ce) (to the extent that this can be deduced from qualitative EDS). See the discusion for the analysis child "photo", scan #294, for details. But, according to Mandarino ("Monteregian Treasures"), parisite is not attacked even by concentrated nitric acid! The analyst suggested rémondite-(Ce), but neither rémondite-(Ce) has not been reported from miarolitic cavities at MSH. Also, the EDS scan appears to show no Na. It is true that the equipment used is very insensitive to Na. Sometimes even scans for albite and sérandite show no Na! But usually there is at least a little bump. The only way out of this conundrum is to posit that the parisite is inter-grown with synchysite-(Ce), which does dissolve readily in HCl. Such an intergrowth might account for the insoluble white residue.
According to the MSH rarity tables published in Lapis and Revista Mineralogica in 2000, parisite-(Ce) and synchysite-(Ce) are extremely rare in the (what used to be called) miarolitic cavities. But at least they were listed.
Even starnger is that some of the white prisms underlying the pink stuff produce almost exactly the same EDS pattern, while others produce a pattern that seems close to calcioburbankite (or a borderline rémondite-(Ce)). See the child photo scans #295, #296, and #297. In particular, note that the last two scans have Na with Sr and/or Y.
I have trouble believing that the white prisms could be parisite-(Ce). But neither calcioburbankite nor rémondite-(Ce) have been reported from miarolitic cavities, and I would be very surprised if this were an exception. As already mentioned, at least the cores of the white needles/prisms appear to be inert in HCl. Thay can't be rémondite-(Ce) or calcioburbankite.
Hence, I have now posted this - very tentatively - as parisite-(Ce) and synchysite-(Ce) for the pink stuff. Make what you will of the underlying white prisms - and scans 295-7.
The shiny black "spider eggs" scattered about have an EDS pattern consistent with siderite. However, many are hollow and crumbly. I suspect that the siderite has turned to Fe and Mn oxides. Other stuff in the cavity includes microcline and (probably) annite. There are also fairly well formed dark prisms, more likely an amphibole than aegirine.
Note: The EDS scans were made on material from another specimen, but I don't think it is worthwhile to post - very similar - photos of that specimen just so that I can post the scans under the "right" parent.
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