Abenab
19.2940° S, 18.0940° E · ± 10 km
Vanadinite from Otjozondjupa Region, Namibia, with photos of specimens from this locality.
Minerals found here
Vanadinite at Abenab
Known for the largest vanadinite crystals in the world.
- Formula
- Pb₅(VO₄)₃Cl
- Morphology
- Hexagonal prisms (very large)
- Typical size
- Crystals reportedly over 12 cm long
- Color / luster
- Usually red, from amber to brownish red and yellow-brown
- History
- Mine worked about 1922-1958; the Otavi Mountain Land vanadium deposits were once regarded as among the greatest in the world.
Geology of the locality
- Setting
- Lead-vanadium-zinc deposit in the Otavi Mountain Land, where vanadium mineralization surrounds primary sphalerite-willemite orebodies.
- Host rock
- Otavi Group dolostone
- Region
- Otjozondjupa Region
- Country
- Namibia
Coordinates are for the Abenab settlement about 32 km north of Grootfontein (Wikipedia, SRC-081), not the mine itself. The mine operated roughly 1922-1958 (SRC-082). Spelled Arenab on some pages.
Sources
- SRC-081 · Website
AbenabWikipedia contributors · Wikipedia - SRC-082 · Website
Vanadinite (Namibia)Namibian.org · namibian.org - SRC-083 · Database
Otavi Mountainland, Namibia (Mindat locality entry 12670)Mindat.org contributors · Mindat.org - SRC-067 · Book
Handbook of Mineralogy - VanadiniteAnthony, J.W.; Bideaux, R.A.; Bladh, K.W.; Nichols, M.C. · Mineralogical Society of America
Draft data from the Provenite workbook. Check entries against the cited sources before relying on them. Photos are open-licence images from Wikimedia Commons; the author and licence are given with each photo.