PYRITE

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Wow! What an amazing and unusual specimen of Pyrite this is from the ore deposit at Oberdorf an der Laming in Styria, Austria. Just checking on mindat for a similar example from th is locality I found only one, only to discover it is this very specimen! This mid-size cabinet specimen has a matrix of snow-white Calcite and embedded throughout most of its entire surface are large brassy golden Pyrite crystals, all pyritohedron habit, but with each crystal gently rounded to give a soft, almost squashable appearance. Individual Pyrite crystals measure between 0.7 to 2.5 cm and average around 1.5 cm in diameter. One imagines the crystals were forced to crystallise in this form due to controls imposed during the period of crystallisation. However, it is possible that somehow the crystals have been mechanically rounded by some post-crystallisation process when in-situ, flow-cutting for example, then 'frozen' in matrix by a subsequent deposition of Calcite. Whatever the process, it is a beautiful and sensational Pyrite from this classic Austrian locality. Show more