Specifications
Description
Locality: Tsumeb Mine area, Tsumeb, Oshikoto Region, Namibia
Description: This smithsonite comes from Tsumeb in northern Namibia, one of the most famous mineral localities on Earth. Local people worked the copper outcrop long before colonial times. A German company opened the modern mine, with full production from 1906 once a railway to the coast was built. Tsumeb went on to produce copper, lead, zinc and several rarer metals for almost a century, until it effectively closed in 1996.
More than 70 minerals were first described from Tsumeb, and its specimens set the standard for azurite, cerussite, dioptase, mimetite and smithsonite. Smithsonite, a zinc carbonate, was one of the most common secondary minerals in all three of the mine's oxidation zones. Small amounts of copper and other metals give it a wide range of colours, from pink to green and blue. The best-known find, the 'Blue Pocket' of the mid-1970s, produced sharp blue-green crystals.
This piece shows classic botryoidal smithsonite with a vivid electric blue to turquoise color, forming rounded, grape-like surfaces that flow over a contrasting brown matrix. The surface has a waxy to silky luster, with small hemispherical growths merging together into a smooth, almost liquid-looking texture. Areas of exposed matrix break up the color and give the piece a more rugged, natural feel, while the brighter blue zones draw the eye immediately.
Smithsonite is a zinc carbonate mineral that forms as a secondary mineral in the oxidized zones of zinc deposits. It develops when zinc-bearing minerals like sphalerite break down and react with carbonated waters near the surface. The botryoidal habit seen here is typical of slow precipitation in open cavities, where layers build outward in rounded forms. The intense blue coloration is usually caused by trace copper, which substitutes into the crystal structure during formation.
Smithsonite is often associated with emotional balance and calming energy. It’s thought to help encourage gentle communication, and support a steady, grounded mindset during periods of change or overwhelm.
Chemical Composition: ZnCO3
Quantity: 1pc
With this product, you will get the actual stone in the photograph.