Quartz var. Eisenkiesel on Fluorite

What can only be described as a delightful bed of striking Eisenkiesel crystals covering a thin and flat plate of deep purple Fluorite, from the Marienschacht mine in the Wölsendorf Fluorite Mining District of Bavaria, Germany.  This mine, originally known as Kuppel mine, operated throughout most of the twentieth century, eventually closing in 1979.  It is now complete backfilled and obliterated from the present landscape.  The Quartz forms stubby, equant smoky crystals with brilliant glassy reflective faces, containing speckled inclusions of brick-red Hematite.  Under low (x5) magnification the appearance of the inclusions is stunning.