Description
These sphalerite crystals on dolomite are from the Elmwood Mine in Carthage, Smith County, Tennessee, Ba-F-Pb-Zn District, Tennessee, US. This mine contains three shafts called the Elmwood, Cumberland, and Gordonsville. It has an entry slope called the Stonewall. They contain eleven different minerals including sphalerite which is the main ore mineral. Sphalerite is a sulfide and it contains the elements Zn and S. Dolomite is a common gangue mineral associated with the sphalerite. It is a carbonite that contains the elements Ca, Mg, C and O. This specimen consists of a breccia chert matrix that is covered with druse quartz which is then topped with rhombic dolomite and lustrous sphalerite crystals. This piece measures 3 x 2 3/4 x 1 1/4 inches or 76 x 70 x 32 mm.
