Specifications
Description
Locality: Baia Mare mining district, Maramureș County, Romania
The Baia Mare district lies in the Gutâi Mountains of northern Romania, part of the volcanic arc on the inner side of the Carpathians. Volcanic activity built these mountains between about 15.4 and 7 million years ago, and the hydrothermal fluids linked to it left hundreds of gold-silver and lead-zinc veins. The Main Vein of the Baia Sprie mine, 8 km long, is the longest ore vein in Europe.
Smoky quartz gets its colour from aluminium. In all smoky quartz a little aluminium takes the place of silicon, but the colour only appears once the crystal has been irradiated. Natural radiation over geological time removes an electron from an oxygen atom next to an aluminium ion, creating a colour centre that absorbs light and gives the typical smoky brown. With enough aluminium and intense radiation the quartz turns completely black, the variety called morion, and heating removes the colour.
Mining around Baia Mare is documented with certainty from the 13th and 14th centuries, and the late 15th century brought a first boom in gold and silver mining. More than 20 mines were still working the district's veins until 2007, and two of its deposits, Cavnic and Baia Sprie, are classed as world-class.
This one of a kind Calcite on Smokey Quartz specimen from Romania features a dense, sculptural carpet of smokey gray Quartz crystals rising in tightly packed points across the entire surface of the matrix. The Quartz shows a soft translucent to semi-opaque appearance with a muted gray-brown tone, while countless white Calcite crystals are scattered across the cluster like a frosted dusting, settling into pockets and over crystal terminations. The overall form is broad and slightly domed, giving the specimen a richly textured display presence with strong contrast between the darker Quartz and the bright white Calcite accents.
Smokey Quartz is a natural variety of Quartz whose color develops through long-term exposure to natural radiation within the earth, while Calcite is one of the most widespread and historically important carbonate minerals. Romania is especially well known among collectors for its classic mineral localities in Maramures, where hydrothermal deposits have produced fine Quartz, Calcite, Pyrite, Sphalerite, Galena, and other collectible associations. Specimens combining Smokey Quartz with contrasting Calcite are appreciated for their balance of form, color, and locality appeal, especially when the Quartz crystals are densely clustered as they are here.
In crystal traditions, smoky quartz is associated with grounding and protection, and calcite with cleansing and clarity.
Chemical Composition: Calcite: CaCO3, Quartz: SiO2
Quantity: 1pc
With this product, you will get the actual stone in the photograph.