Sheshodonnell East Mine, Carran, The Burren, Clare County, Munster, Irelandi
| Regional Level Types | |
|---|---|
| Sheshodonnell East Mine | Mine |
| Carran | Village |
| The Burren | Protected Area |
| Clare County | County |
| Munster | Province |
| Ireland | Country |
This page is currently not sponsored. Click here to sponsor this page.
Latitude & Longitude (WGS84):
53° 1' 5'' North , 9° 5' 25'' West
Latitude & Longitude (decimal):
Type:
KΓΆppen climate type:
Nearest Settlements:
| Place | Population | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Corofin | 689 (2013) | 8.0km |
| Kilfenora | 220 (2013) | 8.7km |
| Boston | 570 (2010) | 10.7km |
| Ballyvaghan | 258 (2013) | 11.8km |
| Lisdoonvarna | 739 (2013) | 13.3km |
Mindat Locality ID:
2022
Long-form identifier:
mindat:1:2:2022:3
GUID (UUID V4):
e4a436e3-e3e3-4b5a-9613-8b26ffee3941
Irish grid ref: R269971
Situated in the midst of one of Europe's best examples of limestone karst scenery, this tiny, Victorian lead mine hosts the most remarkable deposit of smithsonite in the British Isles. Amazingly the sphalerite vein has been completely altered to green, yellow, grey and white botryoidal smithsonite!
Worked on a very small scale from about 1862-1863 a vein varying from about 30-45 cm in width was worked by a shallow trench over a distance of about 100 m.
All of the smithsonite was originally left in the spoil as a gangue mineral and Russell (1917) states that 3 or 4 tonnes of smithsonite was visible on the spoil! Sadly virtually none remains today as most has been bulldozed down the shaft and whatever scraps were left have been long ago collected...
The colour is due to a little cadmium sulphide (averaging 0.57% Cd).
Little more than a tiny badly weathered spoil heap remains today - nothing remotely comparable to its heyday!
Select Mineral List Type
Standard Detailed Gallery Strunz Chemical ElementsDetailed Mineral List:
| β Anglesite Formula: PbSO4 References: |
| β Calcite Formula: CaCO3 Description: Occasionally found as massive material associated with limestone bedrock.
Rare specimens of large nail-head crystals (4cm+) coated in smithsonite have been found albeit severely weathered. |
| β Cerussite Formula: PbCO3 Habit: Prismatic Colour: Colourless, white Fluorescence: Pale yellow Description: Found on oxidising galena specimens. References: |
| β Chalcopyrite Formula: CuFeS2 Description: Generally found disseminated through fluorite. Rarely found unoxidised.
References: |
| βͺ Fluorite Formula: CaF2 Habit: Cubic Colour: Colourless, orange, lilac, to deep purple Description: Extremely common throughout the spoil as it accounted for a large portion of the lode. The majority of smithsonite is found cementing heavily fractured fluorite together. Purple cubic crystals are often coated with mammilated smithsonite. Very rarely purple cubes can be found associated with limestone matrices.
References: |
| β Galena Formula: PbS Habit: Massive Colour: Metallic grey Description: Usually found attached to Fluorite and is usually massive although certain specimens on limestone show what would have been (i.e. before weathering) decent octahedral crystals up to 2cm. References: |
| β Greenockite Formula: CdS |
| β Hydrozincite Formula: Zn5(CO3)2(OH)6 Colour: White References: |
| β Malachite Formula: Cu2(CO3)(OH)2 Colour: Green Description: Rarely found as coatings on oxidised chalcopyrite. References: |
| β Otavite Formula: CdCO3 Habit: Skeletal crystals Colour: White Fluorescence: Pink Description: Microscopic white otavite crystals are found on smithsonite containing high amounts of cadmium. References: |
| β Quartz Formula: SiO2 Habit: Prismatic Colour: Clear Description: Very rarely specimen found in conjuction with crystallized deep purple fluorite or fluorotized limestone. References: |
| β Rosasite Formula: (Cu,Zn)2(CO3)(OH)2 |
| βͺ Smithsonite Formula: ZnCO3 Habit: Botryoidal, Tetrahedral. Colour: Yellow,Orange to Green Description: Very difficult to find nowadays, several specimens in the Barry Flannery Collection show distinct tetrahedra albeit slightly rounded. Mammilations and botryoids are by far the most common although some botryoids/mammilations show tetrahedra under magnification and even microscopic spheres... |
| β Sphalerite Formula: ZnS Description: Extremeely rare at site as the vast majority of sphalerite has been oxidised to smithsonite. |
List of minerals arranged by Strunz 10th Edition classification
| Group 2 - Sulphides and Sulfosalts | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| β | Sphalerite | 2.CB.05a | ZnS |
| β | Chalcopyrite | 2.CB.10a | CuFeS2 |
| β | Greenockite | 2.CB.45 | CdS |
| β | Galena | 2.CD.10 | PbS |
| Group 3 - Halides | |||
| β | Fluorite | 3.AB.25 | CaF2 |
| Group 4 - Oxides and Hydroxides | |||
| β | Quartz | 4.DA.05 | SiO2 |
| Group 5 - Nitrates and Carbonates | |||
| β | Calcite | 5.AB.05 | CaCO3 |
| β | Otavite | 5.AB.05 | CdCO3 |
| β | Smithsonite | 5.AB.05 | ZnCO3 |
| β | Cerussite | 5.AB.15 | PbCO3 |
| β | Malachite | 5.BA.10 | Cu2(CO3)(OH)2 |
| β | Rosasite | 5.BA.10 | (Cu,Zn)2(CO3)(OH)2 |
| β | Hydrozincite | 5.BA.15 | Zn5(CO3)2(OH)6 |
| Group 7 - Sulphates, Chromates, Molybdates and Tungstates | |||
| β | Anglesite | 7.AD.35 | PbSO4 |
List of minerals for each chemical element
Other Regions, Features and Areas containing this locality
British and Irish IslesGroup of Islands
Eurasian PlateTectonic Plate
EuropeContinent
Ireland (island)Island
This page contains all mineral locality references listed on mindat.org. This does not claim to be a complete list. If you know of more minerals from this site, please register so you can add to our database. This locality information is for reference purposes only. You should never attempt to
visit any sites listed in mindat.org without first ensuring that you have the permission of the land and/or mineral rights holders
for access and that you are aware of all safety precautions necessary.
References
