Image Credit: Malcolm Southwood
Image Credit: Malcolm Southwood
Specimen Title
Smithsonite
Associated Minerals
cerussite; goethite; malachite
Principal Mineral
Size
Cabinet; 180mm
Location in the Mine
Undetermined
Provenance
Latz, C.V.
Collection
Geoscience Australia; R28801
Entry Number
Specimen; TSNB800
Associated Minerals
cerussite; goethite; malachite
Description
A shallow, open vug in mineralised dolostone encrusted with saccharoidal green smithsonite rhombs. Sparse crystals of white cerussite and spherules of malachite (< 1 mm) are present locally.
The specimen is from the collection of Clemence Victor Latz which was donated to the Australian Bureau of Mineral Resources (now Geoscience Australia) in 1976.
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 2023; Southwood et al. 2025). They hypothesised that the principal chromophore is Cu (26462 ppm) which is almost certainly in solid solution in the smithsonite lattice. A relatively high Mn content (3388 ppm) is noted. Analytical data is presented in Exhibit 2.
