RHODOCHROSITE. ...

Description

RHODOCHROSITE
Good Luck Pocket, Main Stope, Sweet Home Mine (Home Sweet Home Mine), Mount Bross, Buckskin Gulch, Alma District, Park Co., Colorado, USA

The history of precious metal mining is filled with mines that were oversupplied with optimistic backers and undersupplied with valuable ore. The Home Sweet Home Mine in Buckskin Gulch above Alma, Colorado, is a prime example of this. Were it not for a brief mention of some Rhodochrosite that was found here while mining for Silver in 1878, chances are that the specimen seen here would still be quietly resting in the cold, wet and dark interior of Mount Bross, where it formed some 30 million years ago. As it is, that mention, along with a few others, sparked the interest of a combined group of determined mineral collectors, miners and financial backers, who funded and executed a serious mining venture designed to find and recover treasures like this one.

In the course of their mining operations, this specimen was recovered from what is certainly the premier find of this mine's history - arguably the premier mineral find of all time as well. The "Good Luck Pocket" was discovered on September 21, 1992 and measured 4 x 3 feet and was only 2 to 6 inches across. Inside were found brilliantly lustrous, simple rhombic crystals of the most amazing deep red color imaginable. This notable specimen features two cherry-red rhombs up to 1¾ inches on edge that slightly interpenetrate each other with a minor third crystal off to the right side. There is a tiny amount of Chalcopyrite and Tetrahedrite on the obverse side, but otherwise no other minerals are present. The size and perfection of form and luster, coupled with the intense red color produce an effect that is absolutely un-Earthly. There is no damage and the condition is as good as it gets, largely thanks to the care with which this specimen was recovered. That it was a part of the renowned Houston Museum's collection speaks volumes as to the comparative ranking of this specimen relative to its peers. It was originally purchased by the Museum in 1993 and was considered one of the Museum's more significant specimens. It was only de-accessioned when a larger specimen from the same pocket was donated to the Museum. Measuring 4 inches wide by 2¾ inches high by 1 7/8 inches thick, it sits on an acrylic base.

[For detailed information on this deposit see The Mineralogical Record, Vol. 29, #4. This specimen is pictured in Fig. 67, pp 49: ibid.]

Provenance: Ex. Houston Museum of Natural Science Collection
Photograph, page 49, Mineralogical Record, Vol. 29, No. 4, July-August 1998

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