Mashamba West Mine (Kolwezi)
10.7429° S, 25.3925° E · ± 10 km
Dolomite from Katanga, Democratic Republic of the Congo, with photos of specimens from this locality.
Minerals found here
Dolomite at Mashamba West Mine (Kolwezi)
Intensely pink cobaltoan dolomite rhombs lining vugs in matrix
Photo: Robert M. Lavinsky · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Source
Photo: Robert M. Lavinsky · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Source
Photo: Robert M. Lavinsky · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Source
Photo: Robert M. Lavinsky · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Source
Photo: Robert M. Lavinsky · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Source
- Formula
- CaMg(CO₃)₂
- Morphology
- Rhombohedra in drusy crusts and vug linings on matrix
- Typical size
- Crystals typically a few mm, up to about 5 mm
- Color / luster
- Shocking to hot pink, also deep red-maroon; lustrous
- Trace elements
- Co (cobaltoan dolomite)
- Availability
- Scarce
- History
- Notable finds reached the market in the late 1990s and again later
Geology of the locality
- Setting
- Open pit of the Dima pit group in the Kolwezi copper-cobalt district
- Region
- Katanga
- Country
- Democratic Republic of the Congo
Coordinates are those of the adjacent Mashamba East pit (Wikipedia); Mashamba West is the next pit to the west, so the position is approximate.
Sources
- SRC-475 · Website
Mashamba East mineWikipedia contributors · Wikipedia - SRC-472 · Website
Dolomite - Gallery (Minerals.net)Minerals.net · Minerals.net - SRC-501 · Website
File:Dolomite-222530.jpg (Wikimedia Commons)Robert M. Lavinsky · Wikimedia Commons
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.