Description

#1164- A 1.37 x .95 x .7 – inch specimen of Quartz with Calcite from Herkimer Diamond Mines of America, Herkimer County, New York.  This specimen features a rider next to the main crystal. Both crystals have tan Calcite occurring as an inclusion.  A classic specimen from a world known locale.  Herkimer County’s quartz and calcite crystals formed in the Little Falls Dolostone approximately 500 million years ago when the area was a shallow sea. As sediments accumulated and lithified, cavities formed within the dolostone. Later, groundwater carrying dissolved silica percolated through these cavities, precipitating the quartz crystals, which often grew in a doubly terminated form. Calcite is a common mineral found within the same formations, sometimes forming its own crystals alongside the quartz, with both minerals growing within the same vugs or pockets.