Botallackite

Botallackite is a rare copper oxychloride and forms where there is interaction between seawater and copper ore. Although attributed to Cligga mine itself, a mine close to Perranporth, south of Newquay in Cornwall, the actual occurrence of this Botallackite discovery was in the intertidal beach zone where the Cligga mine veins continue out offshore. This superb cabinet specimen is extremely rich in well crystallised metallic bluish-chrome-green Botallackite, which forms 1 to 3 mm platelets on, and lining vugs in a sea-weathered light rusty-coloured granite. Botallackite crystals are famously delicate and easily perturbed, but this specimen has lots of areas around the granite matrix which can be handled without fear of disturbing these beautiful crystals.