Hauayllani Mine, Machacamarca District (Colavi District), Saavedra Province, Potosi Department, Boliviah
A nice example of rare phosphophyllite from a find made several years ago in the Machacamarca District, at a different mine than the bournonites, but nearby. Phosphophyllite is best known from the old finds at the Unificada Mine— those pieces command prohibitively exorbitant prices, and until this find (with the exception of a few odd type locality pieces from Germany) the species was pretty much outside the price range of most collectors— and even those who could afford them had to wait for a decent piece to become available.
Whenever I read or hear a sales pitch for a phosphophyllite, there is inevitably a reference made to this being a “holy grail” species for collectors…. If the Unificada pieces are the “holy grail” then these Machacamarca specimens are more of the styrofoam cup version of the “grail”, but hey, it’s a phosphophyllite.