Image Credit: Malcolm Southwood
Image Credit: Malcolm Southwood
Specimen Title
smithsonite
Associated Minerals
dolomite (?)
Principal Mineral
Size
Cabinet; 105mm
Provenance
Stacey, G.
Collection
Carr, P.; PFC2007.027
Entry Number
Specimen; TSNB632
Description
Intergrown crystals (to 10 mm) of green smithsonite on a cavernous iron-stained matrix which is locally encrusted with sugary white dolomite (?) microcrystals.
The specimen was acquired from Australian collector George Stacey in 2007, but with no record of earlier provenance or location in the mine.
The specimen has been analysed by EMPA-WDS and LA-ICP-MS as part of a study of the causes of colour in smithsonite (Weall 2022; Southwood et al. 2025). They hypothesised that the principal chromophore is Cu (7121 ppm) which is almost certainly in solid solution in the smithsonite lattice. A very high Cd content (14327 ppm) is also noted. Analytical data is presented in Exhibit 2.
