Baryte, France

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Can you help make this a better article? What good localities have we missed? Can you supply pictures of better specimens than those we show here? Can you give us more and better information about the specimens from these localities? Can you supply better geological or historical information on these localities?


Baryte, France
BaSO₄ Orthorhombic
Here will go a good picture of a Baryte from France and general remarks about the Baryte from this country. Here are some url's to some of the better French Baryte specimens here on Mindat that can be considered for inclusion in the article. These, in most cases are just for temporary use until we can get images of the much better specimens that are almost certainly out there. We should also consider that there are probably localities out there with fine specimens that are not even mentioned on Mindat. Also in some instances there are sometimes pictures on Mindat, of specimens from a locality, but they were so ratty that I did not include them here, but there may also be really good specimens from there that we should talk about in this article.


Baryte
France
Marsanges Mine, Marsanges, Langeac, Haute-Loire, Auvergne, France
[www.mindat.org]


Baryte
France
Puy-de-Dôme, Auvergne, France
[www.mindat.org]
[www.mindat.org]
[www.mindat.org]


Baryte
France
Baryte occurrences, Châtelguyon, Puy-de-Dôme, Auvergne, France
[www.mindat.org]
[www.mindat.org]
[www.mindat.org]


Baryte
France
Maine Mine, Cordesse, Saône-et-Loire, Burgundy, France
[www.mindat.org]
[www.mindat.org]
[www.mindat.org]
[www.mindat.org]
[www.mindat.org]


Baryte
France
La Petite-Verrière, Voltennes, Saône-et-Loire, Burgundy, France
[www.mindat.org]
[www.mindat.org]
[www.mindat.org]


Baryte
France
Chaillac Mine, Chaillac, Indre, Centre, France
[www.mindat.org]


Baryte
France
Mas Dieu, Mercoirol, Gard, Languedoc-Roussillon, France
[www.mindat.org]


Baryte
France
Les Cèdres, Saint-Laurent-le-Minier, Gard, Languedoc-Roussillon, France
[www.mindat.org]
[www.mindat.org]
[www.mindat.org]
[www.mindat.org]


Baryte
France
Cerville (Cerceuil), Auloy, Meurthe-et-Moselle, Lorraine, France
[www.mindat.org]


Baryte
France
Saint-Georges, Ardèche, Rhône-Alpes, France
[www.mindat.org]
[www.mindat.org]


Baryte
France
Trouée des Fées, Les Deux Alpes, Isère, Rhône-Alpes, France
[www.mindat.org]


Baryte
France
Monterniers Mines, Lantignié, Rhône, Rhône-Alpes, France
[www.mindat.org]
[www.mindat.org]


Here are some notes about French Baryte that whoever writes this article may find useful.


France
Saône-et Loire, Autun, Main-Reclesne Mine. “An interesting group of barite specimens were for sale in Al McGuinness’ room. The crystals from Le Man mine…were of a pleasing brownish yellow color and reached 10 cm (4 inches) in length…About half of the 35 specimens in the lot were cabinet size and the rest were large miniatures. Their pedigree was of note: personally collected by Pierre Bariand, curator of minerals at the Sorbonne (University of Paris).1
1. Mineralogical Record, Vol. 194, 1978, p.194.

Gard Department, Saint Laurent le Minier, Les Malines Mine. “…has also recently produced large specimens of milky white barite rosettes, sometimes on botryoidal pyrite, covered with a thin film of sulfur, topped by clear tabular sulfur crystals to 7 cm.”1
1. Mineralogical Record, Vol. 23, 1992, p.434.
See if you can find out how much stuff was produced.

Gard Department, Saint Laurent le Ninier. “Eric (Asselborn) also found a quantity of snow-white barite in radial clusters to 5 cm, sometimes grouped in a fine-grained dolomitic rock from Saint Laurent le Niner.”1
1. Mineralogical Record, Vol. 21, 1990, p.489.
Contact Eric and ask him about this find. Is this from Les Malines Mine above?

Indre, Chaillac. “Small (0.7) cm reddish-tinged blades in 11 cm masses group, Relatively common.”1
1 Bill Dameron, personal communication, 2003, description of a specimen in his collection.
See if you can find out more about this loclaity.

Puy de Dôme Department, Chantelguyon, Ravin de Sans-Souci. “Tabular lozenge-shaped crystals of barite on a granite matrix were also found at Ravin de Sans-Souci…”1
1. Mineralogical Record, Vol. 23, 1992, p.434.
See if you can find out how much stuff was produced and how big the got and what color they were and how shiny and or transparent.

Puy de Dôme Department, Olliox Cote d’Abot. “Large partially gemmy barite crystals to 15 cm have recently been collected at Cote d’Abot… .”1
1. Mineralogical Record, Vol. 23, 1992, p.434.
You should be able to find out more about this locality.
Puy de Dôme Department, Four La Brouque. “Alan Carion…Paris, France had two new items of interest from France at the Tucson show:. Aragonite from Gergorie, and barite from Four La Brouque…the barite exists as sharp, very well formed, blocky, yellow-gray, single crystals up to about 8 cm.”1
1. Mineralogical Record, Vol. 19, 1988, p.337.
Find out from Alan Carion how many of the specimens came from this locality.

Var Department, Esterel, Font Sante Mine. This mine is perhaps better known for its fluorite specimens which are often associated with barite, but fine barite specimens have also been found here. “Barite …is plentiful and very fine specimens have turned up, with white, cream or clear, colorless, curved blades up to 25 cm. Delicate “butterflies,” covered with drusy quartz rest attractively on the fluorite. Attractive rosaete forms also result, with vistas into the colored fluorite beneath. Pale, clear yellow blades contain parallel acicular inclusions which appear to be a sulfide.”1 Specimens at this mine were formerly more abundant before mechanized mining and on site acid treatment of the ore.
1. Mineralogical Record, Vol. 8, 1977, p.309.



Click here to view Barite and here to view Best Minerals B and here for Best Minerals A to Z and here for Fast Navigation of completed Best Minerals articles.

Rock Currier
Crystals not pistols.



Edited 4 time(s). Last edit at 12/28/2012 08:46PM by Rock Currier.

Hi Rock,

I posted a large French Baryte.
Just take a look and if you can use it, just go ahead.

[www.mindat.org]

Thank you in advance.
Take care and best regards.

Paul.

Paul,
Yes definitely, Ill take it! Thats a nice barite!

Rock Currier
Crystals not pistols.

Thank you Rock.

Take care and best regards.

Paul.

Rock,
for St. Laurent le Minier/Les Malines i would suggest some more pictures:

[www.mindat.org]


[www.mindat.org]

cheers
Roger



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 03/30/2010 10:46AM by Roger Lang.

No argument from me. I would like to have both of them in my collection.

Rock Currier
Crystals not pistols.

There are several interesting baryte localities around Issoire, but they only produce small quantities of good crystals. You mostly see single crystals for sale; due to the properties of the host rock, large groups on matrix are almost impossible to recover. At some localities, the crystals are exceptionally clear. However, the veins are very narrow and crystals developed from both sides, so they are often not well formed and difficult to extract without damage.

Here's one from Saint Babel:




There is a guy at Issoire, who runs a small mineral shop. Among other stuff, he trades barytes which he cuts himself.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/04/2010 09:34PM by Rock Currier.

Roger - wonderful St. Laurent le Minier; I have used Dr. A's (as well as mine) on my barite website, but these are jsut great. I hope to start trying to pull together the Best of Species French barite page in the coming weeks into a coherent whole, with all the pictures, etc. These are great pieces.
Peter - Also the neat dumbbell from St Babel. Is it from Four-la-Brouque, like all the scepters on the market?

Bill Dameron