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Nontronite - Sold


Berthier (1827) named nontronite after the region of the mineral's original discovery in France. The mineral is an iron rich smectite clay mineral (Petruk et al. 1977). The mineral has a soaplike or greasy feel. There is an accompanying old German script label from the Schneider collection. The locality designation for the piece may have changed names with time; I cannot locate a reference. This specimen was part of the personal collection of Ralph Merrill, proprietor of the prolific mail order business Minerals Unlimited, obtained in 1956. Merrill's collection card and label also ship with the specimen.