BARITE SPECIMEN LOCALITIES

An aid to labeling display quality barite specimens

For best results maximize browser window; AOL clients use IE; use refresh button for updates

Click picture to enlarge; enlarge picture window to near-maximum

AFRICA

EGYPT
Kharga Oasis, Western Desert	specimen/foto © www.johnbetts-fineminerals.com
	Thin attractive desert roses with sand, sand colored. Mindat.org/Betts
DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC of the CONGO
Haut-Katanga, Kolwezi
	Malachite coated crystals, specimen 6.8 cm. Unusual. Perhaps Shangulowe?
Haut-Katanga, Kolwezi, Mashamba West mine
	Very gemmy deep amber perfect tabular floater, 5 cm. Occur somewhat larger.
Haut-Katanga, Mulungwishi, Shangulowe mine
	Translucent tabular crystals to 2+cm with malachite inclusions, pale green, undamaged 5 cm group. Also chisel point crystals in parallel, 3.5 cm. Occurs in larger crystals, usually not as gemmy.
MOROCCO
Meknès-Tafilalet, Khénifra, Jebel Aouam
	Clear doubly terminated thick tabular crystals to 2 cm in stacked parallel groups to 3 cm. Perched on thick golden partial barite crystal. Also clear, large (7.5 cm) tabular crystal.
Meknès-Tafilalet, Khénifra, Mibladen, (often from the ACF mine)
	From left: Classic parallel milky blades to 2 cm (often larger) with bright vanadinite crystals; Pink-salmon blades, 3 cm, with clear small equant cerussite crystals, 9 cm; Large dark orange cockscomb blades, 7 cm specimen; Cream colored blades with small vanadinites, 5 cm; Unusual "bridges" of vanadinite on barite (really a vanadinite specimen) 2.0-2.5 cm each; With wulfenite, overall 6.5 cm.
Meknès-Tafilalet, Khénifra, Midelt, Aouli
	Sparkling off-white blades to 1 cm with small malachite balls to 0.4 cm. 6x6 cm.
Souss-Massa-Draâ, South of Tizi-n-Tichka, [Iflilt mine]
	Clear flat blades to 3 cm, some (goethite?) inclusions, on tiny quartz crystals, 6 cm group.
Souss-Massa-Draâ, near (probably south of) Tizi-n-Tichka
	2.5 cm cream blades with calcite groups entirely coated with sparkling tiny quartz with goethite inclusions. 8x10 cm specimen.
NAMIBIA
Otjozondjupa, Okoruso mine
	Pale green-yellow thin tabular blades to 0.6cm on thin black to bluish botryoidal (Mn oxide? Goethite?), on 0.5 cm layer of fluorite partial crystals zoned purple/blue, matrix red-brown + fluorite. Uncommon.
Karas, Gross Brukkaros, south of Kitmanskloof
	This gemmy dark-gold zoned crystal with overgrowth of white second generation barite is 3 cm tall. Crystals also to 11 cm, can be tabular and opague or muddy gold.
Karas, Rosh Pinah
	10 cm deep gold spray of “chisel” crystals to 4.5 cm (see similar in Sacco Collection book). Also 7 cm spray of very thin lighter gold blades.
Otjikoto, Tsumeb
	Brown with orange highlights very glossy, thick tabular crystal, 3.5 cm high, with small grey dogtooth smithsonite crystals. 4x5.5 cm specimen. Occurs slightly larger, but this is top quality. Very few were recovered, in the upper levels.
SOUTH AFRICA
Northern Cape Province, N'Chwaning mine
	Blue fairly clear tabular crystals to 2.5 cm somewhat resembling English barites, pyrite on base, good luster, 4.5 cm. Also clear thick 1 cm blade, several smaller, on dark red inesite needles, 6.5 cm; clear/grey crystals to 1.5 cm with white phantoms/late growth barite up the sides in group, 7 cm.
Gauteng, Carletonville, Elandsrand & Mponeng mines
	Elandsrand: huge gray-deep yellow to grey elongated tabular crystals; this group is 70 cm x 30 cm and weigh 64 kilograms, probably the largest crystallized barite specimen in the world; MR 32/3, R&M 78/6.
TUNISIA
Kef, Sidi Amor Ben Salem
	Very white ball of barite, 5 cm, with small points(0.4) cm of the crystals perched on galena. Ex- A. Carion, G. Gauthier, Les Fils d"Emile Deyrolle, M. & Mme. Grenon (1924 label). Type locality for cesarolite, see Dana (1951 vol. II phosgenite)
ZAMBIA
Copperbelt Province, Kitwe, Nkana mine
	Zoned very translucent 4.5 cm crystal, grey-red.

TOP OF PAGE