Buca della Vena Mine, Ponte Stazzemese, Stazzema, Apuan Alps, Lucca Province, Tuscany, Italy

The Buca della Vena mine was exploited for barite and Fe-oxides up to 1988. The mineralization is hosted within two carbonatic lenses of dolomitic metalimestones of Upper Triassic age (Grezzoni formation) and marble of Liassic age (Marble formation), interbedded with lenses of phyllites. The ore body and the hosted rocks show evidences of deformations which have been referred to a first compressive tectonic phase dating back 26 m.y.. Measured homogenization temperature in beryl crystals from the ore body ranged from 250° to 340° C, in good agreement with the metamorphic grade of the area (greenschist facies).
Carmignani et al. (1972, 1976) considered this deposit to be a metasomatic replacement of carbonate rocks, genetically connected to a hypothetical synkinematic intrusive body.
According to Cortecci et al. (1985), on the other hand, on the basis of isotope analysis of sulfates and sulfides, concluded that the deposit is sedimentary in origin and was subsequently metamorphosed and partly remobilized during the Tertiary Appenninic orogeny.

Orlandi & Dini (2004) distinguish four different kind of occurrence of Buca della Vena minerals:
-Type V-1 veins: calcite and baryte veins embedded in the dolomitic limestones.
-Type V-2 veins: quartz and baryte veins embedded in the ore body (Fe-oxides + baryte)
-Type V-3 veins: quartz veins embedded in the phyllites.
-Type F-1 fractures: vertical fractures with the wall covered by calcite, baryte and albite crystals.

References:
• Panichi U., 1911. Minerali che accompagnano il giacimento ferrifero della Buca della Vena presso Stazzema. Atti R. Accad. Naz. Lincei, Rend., 20
• Carmignani L., Dessau G., Duchi G., 1976. I giacimenti a barite, pirite ed ossidi di ferro delle Alpi Apuane. Studio minerogenetico e strutturale. Nuove osservazioni sui giacimenti polimetallici. Boll. Soc. Geol. Ital., 95: 1009-1061
• Mellini M., Merlino S., Orlandi P., 1979. Versiliaite and apuanite, two new minerals from the Apuane Alps, Italy. Amer. Miner., 64: 1230-1234.
• Merlino S., Orlandi P., 1983. A second occurrence of stibivanite: Buca della Vena mine (Apuan Alps), Italy. Canad. Miner. 21: 159-160
• Mellini M., Orlandi P., Perchiazzi N., 1983. Derbylite from Buca della Vena mine, Apuan Alps, Italy. Canad. Miner., 21: 513-516.
• Benvenuti M., Lattanzi P., Tanelli G., Cortecci G., 1986. The Ba-Fe-pyrite deposit of Buca della Vena, Apuane Alps, Italy. Rend. Soc. Ital. Mineral. Petrol., 41: 347-358
• Orlandi P., Checchi F., 1986. La miniera di Buca della Vena (LU) e i suoi minerali. Riv. Mineral. Ital., 10: 49-61
• Orlandi P., Checchi F., 1986. The Buca della Vena mine, Tuscany, Italy. Miner. Rec., 17: 261-268.
• Mellini M., Orlandi P., Vezzalini G., 1986. V-bearing derbylite from Buca della Vena mine, Apuan Alps, Italy. Mineral. Mag., 50: 328-330.
• Duchi G., Franzini M., Giamello M., Orlandi P., Riccobono F., 1993. The iron-rich beryls of Alpi Apuane.Mineralogy, chemistry, fluid inclusion. N. Jb. Miner. Mh., 5: 193-207
• Orlandi P., 1994. Two new mineral phases from Piedmont and Tuscany, Italy. Congr. Internaz. IMA, Pisa, 1994: 311.
• Dini A., Orlandi P., 1995. Coloradoite (HgTe), from Buca della Vena mine, Apuan Alps, Tuscany, Italy. Atti Soc. Tosc. Sci. Nat., Mem., Serie A, 102: 47-50.
• Orlandi P., Pasero M., Duchi G., Olmi F., 1997. Dessauite, (Sr,Pb)(Y,U)(Ti,Fe3+)20 O38, a new mineral of the crichtonite group from Buca della Vena mine, Tuscany, Italy. Amer. Miner., 82: 807-811.
• Orlandi P., Moëlo Y., Meerschaut A., Palvadeau P., 1999. Lead-antimony sulfosalts from Tuscany (Italy). I. Scainiite, Pb14 Sb30 S54 O5, the first Pb-Sb oxy-sulfosalt, from Buca della Vena mine. Eur. J. Miner., 11: 949-954.
• Orlandi P., 2003. Buca della Vena: i solfosali aciculari di piombo e antimonio (Alpi Apuane, Toscana, Italia). Riv. Miner. Ital., 27 (4): 224-229.
• Orlandi P., Dini A., 2004. Die Mineralien der Buca della Vena-Mine, Apuaner Berge, Toskana (Italien). Lapis, 1: 11-24.
• Orlandi P., Moëlo Y., Meerschaut A., Palvadeau P., Leone Ph., 2004. Lead-antimony sulfosalts from Tuscany (Italy). VI. Pellouxite, ~ (Cu,Ag)2Pb21Sb23S55ClO, a new oxy-chloro-sulfosalt from Buca della Vena mine, Apuan Alps. Eur. J. Miner., 16: 839-844.
• Orlandi P., Meerschaut A., Moëlo Y., Palvadeau P., Léone P., 2005. Lead–antimony sulfosalts from Tuscany (Italy). VIII. Rouxelite, Cu2HgPb22Sb28S64(O,S)2, a new sulfosalt from Buca della Vena mine, Apuan Alps: definition and crystal structure. Canad. Mineral., 43: 919-933.
• Orlandi, P. & Pasero, M. (2006): Allanite-(La) from Buca della Vena mine, Apuan Alps, Italy, an epidote-group mineral. Canadian Mineralogist, 44: 63-68
• Orlandi, P., Moëlo, Y., Campostrini, I., Meerschaut, A. (2007): Lead-antimony sulfosalts from Tuscany (Italy). IX. Marrucciite, Hg3Pb16Sb18S46, a new sulfosalt from Buca della Vena mine, Apuan Alps: Definition and crystal structure. European Journal of Mineralogy, 19, 267-279.
• Biagioni, C. (2009). Minerali della Provincia di Lucca. Associazione Micro-Mineralogica Italiana, Cremona, 352 pp.

- http://www.strahlen.org/vp/it/bucadellavena/