massive crystals found in warwick new york

Massive ampibole crystals found in Warwick, New York. Any feedback or comments welcomed.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/23/2011 02:12AM by Glenn Rhein.

I see two different species.

The first gives the impression of being a feldspar. Perhaps, oligoclase.

What is the geological setting? What kind of area are you working? Rock types?

Please give the size of the crystals in addition to finger length! More, more. This is very exciting especially considering the usual disappointing black toothpick crystals from Warwick, warwickite!

Look tetragonal-Scapolite group.
Dave

Glenn,

The first one looks like scapolite from Bancroft, Ontario. Be careful, many field collectors dumped rock all over Southern New York and Northern New Jersey that they collected at other locations, including Canada.

Chet Lemanski of Mindat can help you on this one; he is an wxpert on the area. If it is real, congratulations.

Best,

Joe

these look like they are from a peg, and actually do resemble some of the stuff I found at the Hwy 62 roadcut in Bancroft

Thanks for all the help everyone,

The town required a geologist for a subdivison of property my brother and I had bought.A lthough he did not find anything, he did say the area was rich with rare minerals. I started looking and found nothing but after a couple of years of living on the property I eventually found a small trail of crystals that led me to this find.
They were definately not dumped here. I dug them up from under the roots of a hundred year old oak. There are about twenty boulder size groups and over a thousand pieces. large crystals are up to 12 inches long. I'm hearing words like scapalite, felspar, uvite, flourapitite,clintonite, anphiboles and hornblende.
I'm learning fast. The property is mostly marble and granite rich in iron. Here are some more pictures.

Glenn



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/23/2011 02:13AM by Glenn Rhein.

Glen, nice finds first off!!
The possibility of agerine/augite and hedenburgite may fit your finds. Check after cleaning for any fluorescence as some scapolite may give a response also..
Steve.

Hi Glen,
I am a collector very familiar with the area, and I would have to agree with David that this is Scapolite. There is a very similar piece of Scapolite exhibited in the Bear Mountain museum that originates from Twin Ponds near Monroe, which encompasses the same geological setting (Reading Prong/Highlands Region). I have also personally collected Scapolite similar to yours (although smaller) in a one-time find near Amity.

You can also check for fluorescence. My piece of Scapolite from nearby Amity fluoresces a very faint whitish color - that can be a clear indicator.

Large Diopside and Hedenbergite crystals that crystallize similarly also come from this region, but these are greener in color whereas the scapolite is off-white. It is definitely not Feldspar as these form as more crude easily-identifiable habits in the area. (In fact, my Scapolite specimen from Amity came associated together with Feldspar and the contrast was easily discernible.)

I have many other minerals from this region and would be interested in swapping with your if you are interested.
- Hershel

Glen,

If I may ask, what do you intend to do with the specimens? Donate them, sell them, trade them? I personally would be interested in a fist sized crystal or specimen of each mineral. Either way, you should have local experts take a look at them. Folks at the Franklin or Sterling Hill Mining Museum can help as can Chet Lemanski, Steve Kuitems and others in the area.

Congratulations,

Joe

picture # 1 Fluorapitie ? 2 1/2 inches wide and 3 1/2 long
#2 large felspar crystal is about 12 inchs wide lined with smaller crystals
# 3 14 inch granite pepered with sphene ? flat hard crystal.

Not sure what I'm going to do with them yet.
Some to a museumn for sure



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 01/27/2011 09:52PM by Glenn Rhein.

It would be my dream to live somewhere and find some of my own crystals like that. Those are huge and invaluable.

The scapalite crystals fluoresces a bright pinkish red. the surounding granite also fluoresces the same color. Does that mean the white in the granite is scapalite ? Areas around the crystals had black coarse sand. was he scapalite sucked out of the granite to form the crystals leaving the black coarse sand?
some of the granite is hard and some of it just crumbles.
Thanks for all your comments. [

Hi Glenn,
I live in nearby Rockland County, New York, and am always studying the surrounding deposits of the Ramapo Mountains and Highlands area. I would love to take a look at what you've found and help identify them, as well as check out the deposit. You can email me at hershel@minerals.net.

In regards to your new set of photos, fluorapatite has definitely been found in the area, and it is usually associated with calcite, diopside, and scapolite. That photo for the fluorapatite is a bit fuzzy. Fluroapatite crystals are usually glossier than the other area crystals. This is how they look in the area - this one is from Twin Lakes right off Route 6 in Harriman State Park:
http://www.mindat.org/photo-1921.html

The second photo definitely looks like Feldspar - quite a large feldpar crystal for the area! That one should definitely go to a museum! It looks like it is associated together with scapolite as the smaller crystals though - check their fluorescence. The scapolite I found at Amity is also associated with a large feldspar crystal.

The third photo gives a hint at titanite/sphene, but I have never seen such large crystals in the area. It also looks like it may be dodecahedral, so perhaps dodecahedral magnetite (i.e. similar to that found in the olden days at Monroe?) Are the crystals flattened or dodecahedral? Are they attracted to magnets?

You definitely have made a significant find for your area, and it might still yield other specimens if you wish to continue digging
Use care though, as it is so easy to damage good crystals in a moment of haste , which cannot be repaired in the time that
follows...

You should be most proud of your find and as mentioned, you might want to offer the larger ones to a local museum
so that others can become inspired to collect in your general area...as a result of your good fortune.

Glenn, Great find for the area. These things can still be found up there, since the entire marble belt from the NJ line to Mt Adam and Eve is mineralized. Would love to know the outcome as more pieces are found, and if you have a nice small cabinet piece, let me know, after Joe picks. I have additional information here on the region. Again, great find, and keep on digging.

Hi Glenn,

I've just talked to Dick Hauck, president of Sterling Hill Mining Museum in Ogdensburg, and he's asked me to follow up on this. Our museum would be interested in obtaining a good crystal group from this find, as the two ore deposits here -- the zinc mines at Franklin and Sterling Hill -- are in the Franklin Marble, the same geological unit that continues northward to the Warwick area. We've found specimens similar to yours here at Sterling Hill, with crystal groups weathered out of the original marble. This is an exciting find. As a geologist and part-time mineralogist I would also love to visit the locality, take some photographs (if allowed), and help you identify any remaining unknowns. We're only a short drive away.

Cheers- Earl

My cell phone number is 845-551-0484
I'm certainly interested in what they are and ideas of what to do with them

Thanks , Glenn



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/23/2011 02:14AM by Glenn Rhein.

Once again, Mindat works...a museum willing to help one on one and place a specimen in their collection...
that is not only amazing, but it reinforces all that I believe about the power of this medium and this site. wh


Glenn, you might want to have a close look at what you have and make some choices about which specimens
you personally like the best and set them aside and do not give them away...this isn't selfish, but it will save you grief
later on, after having collected for a while...I have some regrets myself in this arena, and only suggest this
to save you from the same regrets later on. You cannot find them twice, so keeping what you like now is only
good planning.Have fun and good luck.

Wow, Glenn, people really want those rocks! I'd keep them if I were you. Maybe you should keep the location confidential also.

Ray,

I would like to pat myself on the back and state that I was the person that called Dick Hauck at the Sterling Hill Mining Museum yesterday and suggested they check out the minerals and the find. Thanks to Mindat, as you stated, something positive might come out of this.

As for Scott's statements, we already know the area in which the crystals were found, it's no secret and many of us East Coast collectors have specimens from that area. Scott, if Glenn keeps them all for himself, what would be the purpose? The best way to preserve a find is to keep some for yourself and distribute the rest. The main objective is to get them into a local museum because of the scientific value. Now let's be realistic, the crystals are ugly and are not blue, green, red, orange, yellow or purple and are not transparent. If Glenn wants to give them a nice home and Glenn can gain something from it, then science, the collector community and the museums benefit. Respectfully, I think you are missing the point of all this enthusiasm and discussion. Yes, we are excited but we are not willing to part with a lot of money to get one. If the museums get most of them, it will be fine by me. We are talking about scientific value here, not the spot price of gold or platinum.

Best,

Joe