Milpillas Shattuckite!
The Milpillas mine has been wowing collectors for years, first with its azurites, then as the years progressed excellent examples of volborthite, malachite, cuprite, and brochantite were also recovered. The latest major find from this mine has been shattuckite. These started coming out about a year ago, as inclusions in quartz and gradually progressed to actual orbs of the mineral. I posted a small group a while back, though am pleased to report that the quality has continued to improve-- in many ways, if not for the matrix (chrysocolla/ aurichalcite instead of quartz) some of these are even indistinguishable from the more famous (and expensive) examples from Namibia's Kaokoveld Plateau.
List
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MST01 Shattuckite
Milpillas Mine, Cuitaca, Sonora, Mexico
10.7x 6.6x 5.2 cm
$600
My favorite example from the lot-- this one has numerous ball-like clusters of acicular shatuckite crystals set back slightly in a shallow vug. The vug has actually sheltered the shatuckites, and allowed them to retain a degree of fuzziness that generally goes away as soon as they are touched. The matrix is mostly a mixture of aurichalcite and chrysocolla, and the color contrast between the centrally positioned shattuckite and the lighter blue-green matrix makes for a particularly beautiful specimen.
MST02 Shattuckite
Milpillas Mine, Cuitaca, Sonora, Mexico
10.6x 7.1x 3.8 cm
$395
A large and very rich example of shattuckite from Milpillas. This piece is exceptionally rich, and nearly covered on both sides with hundreds of shatuckite balls, with minor bits of aurichalcite.
MST03 Shattuckite
Milpillas Mine, Cuitaca, Sonora, Mexico
10.0x 8.4x 5.5 cm
$400
A large and very rich example of shattuckite from Milpillas. This piece is exceptionally rich, and nearly covered on both sides with hundreds of shatuckite balls, with minor bits of aurichalcite.
MST04 Quartz with Shattuckite
Milpillas Mine, Cuitaca, Sonora, Mexico
7.7x 6.6x 5.3 cm
$460
One of only a couple examples of shattuckite overgrown with quartz that I was able to obtain. The quartz crystals give an extra bit of luster to the specimen, and seem to deepen the blue of the underlying/ included shattuckite, making for a nice contrast with the aurichalcite/ chrysocolla matrix.
MST05 Shattuckite
Milpillas Mine, Cuitaca, Sonora, Mexico
11.5x8.3x 5.5 cm
$375
A nice cabinet sized example of shattuckite from Milpillas. While much of the shatuckite in the matrix is contacted, this one has a nice vug near the top filled with fuzzy pseudo-botryoidal orbs that still retain their luster thanks to the protection afforded by being set slightly back in the vug.
MST06 Shattuckite
Milpillas Mine, Cuitaca, Sonora, Mexico
7.1x 3.0x 2.8 cm
$245
A nice example of shattuckite, with numerous pseudo-botryoidal orbs that still retain their fuzzy luster. Most pieces from his find have been handled or banged around in some way, finding pieces that still have that some of that fuzzy appearance was a bit difficult.
MST07 Shattuckite
Milpillas Mine, Cuitaca, Sonora, Mexico
5.6x 3.5x 2.8 cm
$175
A nice example of shattuckite, with numerous pseudo-botryoidal orbs that still retain their fuzzy luster. Most pieces from this find have been handled or banged around in some way, finding pieces that still have that some of that fuzzy appearance was a bit difficult.
MST08 Quartz with Shattuckite
Milpillas Mine, Cuitaca, Sonora, Mexico
7.8x 4.8x 5.0 cm
$395
A beautiful example of shattuckite on a chrysocolla/ aurichalcite matrix, overgrown by numerous quartz crystals. I was only able to get a couple examples with this association, and the quartz overgrowth adds a nice bit of sparkle absent in those that are mainly shatuckite.
MST09 Shattuckite
Milpillas Mine, Cuitaca, Sonora, Mexico
6.8x 4.5x 1.7 cm
$235
A nice, rich example of shattuckite from recent finds at the Milpillas Mine.
MST10 Shattuckite with Aurichalcite
Milpillas Mine, Cuitaca, Sonora, Mexico
5.5x 4.8x 3.8 cm
$175
A nice example of shattuckite with nicely contrasting aurichalcite. I liked the way there was interspersed aurichalcite between the shattuckite groups, rather than being solely shattuckite orbs-- I thought it added a nice degree of color contrast.
MST11 Shattuckite
Milpillas Mine, Cuitaca, Sonora, Mexico
5.7x 3.1x 4.3 cm
$145
A nice example of slightly paler shattuckite, coating a chrysocolla. aurichalcite rich matrix.
MST12 Shattuckite
Milpillas Mine, Cuitaca, Sonora, Mexico
4.0x 2.3x 2.5 cm
$140
A nice example of shattuckite, with numerous pseudo-botryoidal orbs that still retain their fuzzy luster. Most pieces from this find have been handled or banged around in some way, finding pieces that still have that some of that fuzzy appearance was a bit difficult.
MST13 Shattuckite
Milpillas Mine, Cuitaca, Sonora, Mexico
4.3x 2.7x 2.5 cm
$135
A nice example of shattuckite, with numerous pseudo-botryoidal orbs that still retain their fuzzy luster. Most pieces from this find have been handled or banged around in some way, finding pieces that still have that some of that fuzzy appearance was a bit difficult.
MST14 Shattuckite
Milpillas Mine, Cuitaca, Sonora, Mexico
3.0x 2.1x 1.6 cm
$130
A nice example of shattuckite, with numerous pseudo-botryoidal orbs that still retain their fuzzy luster. Most pieces from this find have been handled or banged around in some way, finding pieces that still have that some of that fuzzy appearance was a bit difficult.
For this reason, and its general cleanliness and appearance, this was my favorite thumbnail from the group.
MST15 Shattuckite
Milpillas Mine, Cuitaca, Sonora, Mexico
4.0x 3.5x 2.7 cm
$125
A nice example of shattuckite, with pseudo-botryoidal orbs that still retain their fuzzy luster. Most pieces from this find have been handled or banged around in some way, finding pieces that still have that some of that fuzzy appearance was a bit difficult.
MST16 Shattuckite with Aurichalcite
Milpillas Mine, Cuitaca, Sonora, Mexico
3.5x 2.2x 1.3 cm
$85
A nice example shattuckite with nice contrasting aurichalcite. The shattuckite still retains a degree of its "fuzzy" luster, particularly on the side with the aurichalcite. Most pieces from this find have been handled or banged around in some way, so finding pieces that still have that some of that fuzzy appearance was a bit difficult.
MST17 Shattuckite
Milpillas Mine, Cuitaca, Sonora, Mexico
2.8x 2.5x 1.5 cm
$75
A nice thumbnail sized example of shattuckite from recent finds at the Milpillas Mine.
MST18 Chrysocolla
Milpillas Mine, Cuitaca, Sonora, Mexico
7.3x 6.3x 4.1 cm
$100
A nice example of chrysocolla from the same area in the mine as the shattuckite. While there was a lot of chrysocolla found along with the shattuckite, almost all of it was just massive material embedded in matrix. This piece was a actually a good example of chrysocolla in its own right, with good botryoidal structure. And wherever there are tiny chips, you can see the much deeper aqua blue color within.
