Lavendulan

A thin, patchy, pale blue coating of lavendulan, in tiny spheroids, on granular willemite-franklinite-calcite ore.  The associated green mineral has been sight-identified as possible cuprian adamite.  Also present is reddish-brown, microcrystalline sarkinite and a black coating tentatively regarded as tenorite.

The history of this specimen is recounted in detail in the reference given above.  It was found on the 1200 level in the Sterling mine, date unknown, and in 1979 was sold by Fred Parker (Parker Minerals) to Robert Trimingham, a systematic mineral collector from California.  It was then regarded as aurichalcite, but Trimingham noted the failure of the mineral to react to hydrochloric acid and recommended further study.  Upon Trimingham's demise in 2013, the specimen passed into the hands of Rock Currier (Jewel Tunnel Imports) and was then sold to Forrest Cureton.  Cureton noted that the mineral, upon magnification, did not resemble typical aurichalcite and submitted it for XRD and EDS analysis, which proved the mineral to be lavendulan. The original specimen measured 7 x 5 cm but was later trimmed to its present size of 4 x 2.5 cm; a smaller trim piece, also bearing lavendulan, as of 2014 was in the collection of Mark Feinglos.  Another specimen from the collection of Steven Kuitems is pictured in King et al. (2021).

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