Home > Skorpion, Broken Hill, Salmo – July 24 > MS1382 Smithsonite

Smithsonite - Sold


Smithsonite is a zinc carbonate mineral. In zinc deposits, the mineral is quite common, and sometimes confused with hemimorphite. Beudant (1832) named smithsonite after James Smithson (1754-1829), who founded the Smithsonian Institution. While smithsonite typically appears as rounded and botryoidal formations, there are a few worldwide localities for single crystals. Smithsonite crystals are most well known from Namibia, but the Broken Hill mine also produces large fine crystals. This is such an example, a tan doubly terminated crystal. The crystal is a combination of steep rhombohedral and prismatic faces.