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Home , Argyrodite, Descloizite, Wulfenite

American Mineralogist, Volume 66, pages 885'907' l98I

The largest

PEreR C. Rtcrwooo Schoolof Applied Geologlt (Jniversityof New South |l'ales Kensington,N. S.W. 2033, Australia

Abstract

No upper limit on the sizeof crystalsis to be expected,-butthe dimensionsand occurrences of the largestknown crystalsin each of twenty-four categories(nine classes)of are presentedand discussed.The largestauthenticated brystal of any type is a beryl from Mala- katna, MalagasyRepublic, being l8 m in length, 3.5 m in diameter,having a volume esti- mated at 143m3 and a massapproximately 380'000 kg.

Introduction throughout the world, has, however, yielded much data which is presentedhere for it has never pre- Palache (1923) wrote, "How large can crystals viously been brought together in a single com- grow? What teacher of mineralogy but has been pilation. askedthis questionmany times. He would probably is no limit but if he tried to tell of the reply that there The ComPilation biggest that had been found he would find it difficult a problem to give an exact answer". Among the many improb- How best to presentthis data has been such as Pa- able taleshanded down from studentto studentis the for a list including every species, would have story of a mysterious locality in the Urals where a lache (1923) commenced to compile, to quarry was made inside a single feldspar . And been both cumbersomeand extremely difficult gives (Table yet there may be truth in this, for the undocumented produce. Accordingly, this compilation the mineral report of such an orthoclasecrystal can be traced to t; th" lutg"tt known crystalsfor each of and Berry Lindgren (1933,p.754). Its sizewas given by Hurlbut classesin the classificationused by Mason named in (1968,p.14) thus ". . . in the Ural Mountains a quarry (1968,p.197). Each of the compositions listed and the 30 x 30 feet of unknown depth was opened in a iheir class titles has been separately been con- single feldspar crystal", and Kostov (1968, p.55) most common minerals-silicates-have data for or- wrote "There are known, . . . orthoclasecrystals l0 m sideredby subclasses.In addition' some x l0 m weighing up to 100 tons,.. ." Regrettably, ganic minerals are Presented. categories, like many giant crystalsit was not accurately mea- For each of the twenty-four mineral which have the sured, so its true dimensions remain unknown. there are listed in Table I the crystals greatest More than half a century has passedsince Palache greatestlength, the greatestvolume, and the rec- (1923)published, in this journal, a list of the largest mass. Sometimesa single crystal has all three have often crystals known to him, and wrote "Will not every ords, but multiple entries for a category establish reader of this magazinesupply such data as he pos- proved necessaryto encompassthese and specimens sesses?"The plea must have been unheededfor an ihe records in that sequence.Additional has been in- updatedlist did not appear,although Spencer(1928)' are also listed whenevera larger crystal existsthat it Frondel (1935),and Jahns (1953)subsequently re- completelydocumented, or where doubt given in SI units with corded additional data on large crystalsof minerals is a single crystal. All data are by an aster- which were of particular interestto them. A more re- convertedmeasurements being indicated parametersbeing en- cent appeal (Rickwood, 1976)for such data was also isk and estimatedor calculated measurements rewardedwith fittte response.An extensiveliterature closed by parentheses.Converted (or two signifi- search, and a multitude of letters to mineralogists have been rounded to the nearestcm

0003-004x/8l /09 I 0-088s$02.00 885 EE6 RICKWOOD: LARGEST CRYSTALS

Table l. The largest crystals of minerals

CLASS ASSIITIED DIMENSIoNS(n) VOU'IIIE I{ASS DEI{S-MT REFERENCES lxzx3(n3)(kg) (g/-3)

I. MTIVE ELEMEN'IS

a, Kmacite (q -ircn - alloy) 0.92 0.54 0.23- (o.03E) g3 (7.9o) FESENKOV(rgsE) Fe-Ni 0.13 Gressk, MiEk oblast, u.s.s.R.

a2 cold *0.30 -Au (r9.3) STNXANXAS(r96EPp.27E 2w) Mother Lode, Cali fomia, u.s.A.

a< Sulphur 0.225 0. 165 (<0.0025) (

2. SULPIiIDES € SULPHOSALTS

(i)SULTHIDES € RELAIED COilPOIJNN

bl stibnite ' 0.60 0.0s (0.0s) (0.001s) (6.ss) (4.63) flADA(1904,p.2r). sb2s3 PATACHE(1923,p.362). Yokohi Mines, Ichinokawa, Shikoku Island, Iyo Prcvince, Japan,

b? Stibnite - O.S8S 0.057 0.048 (0.00r6) (7.4r) (4.63) }|ANISct (Pors,Cm, sb2s3 rE. I.50) (Figuro 2) Ichinokara, Iyo, Shikoku, Japan.

b. *0,25 0.25 0.25 c0.01s61 (rr8) c7.56) GREG6 r.ETTS6l " Pbs (r8sE, p.41s). Great Luey lr{ine, Isle PAIAGIE [r923,p.362). of lr{an,U.K. (Ftgue 5)

(ii)SULPH6ALTS

cr Tenkntite - 0.3O (o. @3rE) (14.7') (4.61) (Cu,Fe) PIN(I & HIT,soN l2As4Sr3 (1977,p.33) Tsmeb, Nmibia

c? Arp.rodite - 0. lE 0,I5 8.12 (0.00324) (20.0e) (6.2) cUILLEWN(1964,p.1) Ag8GeS6 (1972,p.rrs). Bolivia

OXIDES AND HYDROXIDES

(i) OXIDES

-1 Coludite *0.76 0.61 <0.0064 :0.00297) ( ls, 4) (s.2) H NTEY(r9s5,p.77) ( Fe , N'l) (Nb , Ta) 206 PAGE(PeE.Cm. Bob Ingersoll l{ine, 6.6.E0) Dike No.l, Black Hills, S.Dakota, U.S.A.

dz Corodm 0.65 0. 40 (0.03s6) '152 (5.98) IIALL (1920,p.128, Al2 03 (diil) PTATE XXI) nr.Mica Sidins. PAIA(}|E(1923,p. 363) Transvaal, R.5.A. (FIGURE4.) cant figures) and calculations of volume and mass later paper includes additional data. Several mea- have been based on the rounded figures, assuming surements have been obtained from the book by simple geometricalshapes. Sinkankas (1964\, but this author did not cire the For each crystal, only the original reference is data sourcesso this information could not be veri- cited unlessit is in a rather obscurepublicatron, or a fied. Books by Guillemin (1964, 1972)arc lisrs of se- RICKWOOD LARGEST CRYSTALS lected specimenscontained in various museum col- literature (Dana and Brush, 1812, p.l5; Hurlbut, lectionsand were most useful sourcesof information. 1968,p.156; Murdoch, 1943;Palache et al., 1944, However, occasionaldiscrepancies in dimensions p.l0l) as having been found in the Range, have been noticed betweendata given by Guillemin Keweenaw Peninsula, Michigan, U.S.A' However, and that supplied by curators.In theseinstances the Mr. A.Y. Johnstone(Pers. Comm.20.5.77) noted that information provided by museum curators has been thesewere almost certainly crystal aggregatesand the preferred. Note that Guillemin (1964) renumbered largest of the rare single crystals from the area was the pagesfor each museum so that it is necessaryto only 4.4 x 3.2 x 3.2 cm. know the location of the crystal before data can be L3 This crystal (Fig. l) is in the collection of retrieved. the Museo Civico di Storia Naturale, Milan, Italy. A The crystalsrecorded here merit inclusion by vir- sketch supplied by Dr. V. de Michele (Pers.Comm. ture of their size and not their beauty. Indeed many 22.10J9) gives the listed dinensions which are more of these large crystalshave irregular form and little accurate than those given by Guillemin (1964, p.l; aestheticappeal. Very large crystalscan be difficult, 1972,p.5) and de Michele(1978, p.42). A smallpatch if not impossible,to accuratelymeasure unless they of calcite adheres to the sulphur so that the true are completely mined out of their matrix. Seldom weight is not known. would a geologistbe presentthroughout such an op- Other notable sulphur crystalsare: eration and so, of necessity,some dimensions may (i) one 18 cm long from Perticara,Urbino, Italy have been obtained from miners. It is also difficult to and kept in the Institute of Mineralogy, Milan, Italy; ascertainthat theseare single entities and not aggre- Guillemin (1964,p.l). gatesof smallercrystals. Hence, unless an author has specifically indicated that the material is a single crystal, there has been a consciousrejection of all data on "masses","aggregates", "deposits'n, "shoots", "pods", etc. Notes on entriesin Table I Almost all of the entries in Table I require com- ment and to avoid an extensivelist of footnotesthese comments are included in the text. The alphabetic designation signifies the mineral category to which the comment relates,and the subscript numeral in- dicates the specific entry. Dimensions published in Imperial units have been converted to metric units and are given in parenthesesin thesenotes. o1 This specimenis "... a monocrystalhex- ahedrite , .." being describedas "an irregular bowl- shaped mass, with an overall length of 92 cm and a width of 54 cm: it attains a thicknessof about 23 cm along the edgesbut is only 13 cm thick near the cen- ter". (Dr. B. Mason,Pers. Comm.3.l.79). The density of kamacite was found by Henderson and Parry (1954)to be 7.90+0.02g/cm'. As this is extraterrestrialmaterial, this entry is ad- ditional to those of terrestrial minerals. d2 Sinkankas(1964, p.280) mentioned ". . . oc- tahedral plates to 12" broad. . ." (0.30 m) from an unspecifiedlocation in California, but the Curator, (terrestrial) NATIVE Mineral Museum, Division of Mines and Geology, Fig. L The largest authenticated ELEMENa| crystal by length, volume and mass. Sulphur, Stateof California, U.S.A. cannotconfirm this occur- PerticaraMine, Urbino, Italy. This photographhas been supplied rence.(Mrs. E.M. Learned,Pers. Comm. 28.9.79). by, and is producedby permissionof, Dr. V. de Michele, Museo Very large specimensof copperare recordedin the Civico di Storia Naturale, Milan, Italy (Table 1-a3). RI CKIIOO D: l,tlRcEST CRYSTALS

(ii) ". . . presqueparfaits de 15d 20 cm. . ." from Kuibichev, U.S.S.R. which are in the Fersman Mu- seum, Academy of Sciences,Moscow, U.S.S.R.; Guillemin (1972,p.98). (iii) specimen32156a in the American Museum of Natural History, New York, U.S.A. which is bro- ken but still measures14 x 13 x 8 cm and came from Cianciana, Sicily; Frondel (1935,p.473). (iv) one 12.70 x 8.89 x 6.35 cm from Maybee Quarry, Monroe County, Michigan, U.S.A. and which is in the Cranbrook Institute of Science,Mich- igan, U.S.A.; Mr. A.Y. Johnstone(pers. Comm. 20.5.77\. (v) "Groups de gros cristaux parfait de l0 d 15 cm" from Conil, Cadiz, Spain and kept in the Mu- seum of Natural Sciences,Madrid, Spain; Guillemin (1964,p.l). Graphite crystals 20 cm long have been reported from unspecifiedlocalities in Sri Lanka; Weinschenk (1900,p.292.297), Kostov (1968,p.105). b, One 5 cm dimension is inferred. Note, Wada (1904,p.zl) stated ". . . crystalsmore than 60 cm long were found". This specimen is in the Wada Collection, Central ResearchLaboratory, Mitsubishi Metal Mining Company, Yonu-Shi, Saitana pre- fecture, Japan; it was found in lyo province which has since been renamed Ehime prefecture; Namu (1970,p.152). bz One of a group of crystals (Fig. 2) in the Mineralogisch-PetrographischesInstitut, Universitiit Hamburg, Germany; Dr. M. Hiinisch (pers. Comm. 18.1.80).Guillemin (1972,p.5) reportedthat the length of the largestof thesecrystals was 65 cm, but the new measurementsdo not confirm that size. However, Dr. Hiinisch reported that the group had twice been repaired and "may be, the length once wasabout 65 cm". The next largestcrystal is 52 x 2.9 x 3.25cm. Fig. 2. The largestauthenticated S(ILpHIDE crystal by length. Other notable crystalsof stibnite from this locality Stibnite, Ichinokawa, Iyo, Shikoku, Japan. This photograph was are: supplied by, and is rcproducedby permissionof, Dr. M. Hiinisch, (i) a 54 x7 x 4 cmcrystal,specimen 15426 nthe Mineralogisch-PetrographischesInstitut, Universitat Hamburg, Germany (Table l-b2). Ecole National Superieuredes Mines, Paris, France; Guillemin (1964,p.2;1972, p.27). (iD a 42 x 4 x 4 cm crystal in the Museum of the of Sciencesof the U.S.S.R.,Moscow, U.S.S.R. is 35 Geological Survey, Pretoria, South Africa (pers. x 15 cm; Guillemin (1964,p.2; 1972,p.94-95). Comm.,The Director,27.9.77\. b3 This specimen(BM 61213\is in the British (iii) a 40 x 3 cm crystal in the Wada Collection; Museum (Natural History), London. Figure 3. Guillemin (1972,p.8 l). The Fersman Museum, Academy of Sciences, (iv) a 40 cm crystal in the Facult6 des Sciences, Moscow,U.S.S.R., has a cube of pyrite 25 x 18 x Paris, France; Guillemin (1964,p.4; 1972,p.43). 15 cm from Aktchitao, Kazakhstan,U.S.S.R. A cleavagefragment of orpiment (AsrSr)from ya- (Guillemin, 1964,p.4; 1972,p.98), and the Institute kutia, U.S.S.R.in the FersmanMuseum. Academv of Mineralogy, Heidelberg,Germany has a pyritohe- RICKWOOD: LARGEST CRYSTALS

In his book, Bancroft (1973, p.la\ has a photo- graph of a proustite crystal from Chaflarcillo, Ata- cama. Chile which is 8.3 x 6.4 cm (Pers. Comm'

x 3.5 cm. (iii) Bournonite (PbCuSbS3),Vibora Mine, Machacamarca,Bolivia "... up to l0 cm ia 5i2s."- Palacheet at., (1964,p.409). A larger crystal, 4.5 in' diameter and I in. thick (11.43 cm diameter x 2.54 cm thick) is part of a group from Liskeard, Cornwall, England, that comprisesspecimen 42222 n the Brit- Fig. 3. The largest SULPHIDE crystal by volume and mass. ish Museum CNatural History), London, England' Galena, Great Laxcy Mine, Isle of Man, U.K.{composite cubo' (Dr. P. Bancroft,Pers. Comm. 17.7.79). octahedra up to 25 cm, specimen BM 61213). Photograph (iv) Enargite (CurAsSn),, Namibia, 8 x 3 permission of the British Museum (Natural rcproduced by cm,-Pinch and Wilson (1977,p.24), and "... large History), London (Iable l-Q)' cleavagesto 2" x 3" (7.6 x 5.1 cm) at La Paz, Bo- livia"; $inkankas(1964, P.318). dron of pyrite 20 cm (in diameter?) from Rio Marina, d, Hanley (1953)described the minerals at the Da- Elba, Italy (Guillemin, 1964,P.l). Bob Ingersoll Mine, Keystone District, South c1 This was stated to be a set of "tetrahedral kota, U.S.A. and stated(p.77) that in Dike No. I the crystals up to 30 cm on an edge"-Pinch and Wilson wall zone of cleavelandite-quartz-muscovite pegma- (1977, p.33) and a perfectly symnetrical shape has tite contains"Columbite, commonly in thin platesas been assumed.This is probably specimen 428 of the much as 2.5 ft. long (0.76 m) and 2 ft. wide (0.61 Kegel Collection which is now part of the Roebling D), . . ." In Dike No. 2 the quartz-albite pegmatiteis Collection of the Smithsonian Institution; White coarserat the 4,950ft. level than at the surface,"' ' ', (1977, p.5lfalthough the latter stated the size as and columbite platesare as much as 2.5 ft. long (0.76 12" x 12" (30 x 30 cm) with a 6" (15 cm) tetrahe- m) and 1.3ft. wide (0.40m) at this level." (p.79). Dr. dron. L- R. Page (Pers.Comm. 6.6.80)described these as c4 This is specimenC5l in the Cranfield Col- being ". . .very thin, as I remember,about one quar- lection of the SmithsonianInstitution, \{a5hington, ter of an inch or less." (=0.0064 m). (Fig. 4) were U.S.A. (Guillemin, 1972,P.lll). d2 The dinensions of this crystal Other notable sulphosaltcrystals are: obtained by measurementof Hall's (1920)Plate XXI (i) Tetrahedrite (Cu'rSboS")from a mine at Ira- and are larger than valuesreported by Palache(1923, zein, AriCge,France. A tetrahedralcrystal with edges p.363)who gave6l cm and 30 cm, the latter distance 15 cm in length and a massof 2.6 kg is in the mu- being clearly in error. The shapeis roughly a cone on seum of the University of Paris (Sorbonne), Paris, a hemispherical baseand a volume calculated for this France (Dr. P. Bariand, Pers.Comm. 28.11.80);it form is only in accordwith the statedmass of 335 lbs. was photographically documented by Bariand and (152 kg) if the density is 4.27 E/cm:' The crystal was Bariand (1976, p.9G-l). found at Cleveland Rhone Tributes, a working on (ii) Proustite (AgrAsS,) from Schneeberg,Ger- the left bank of Sudimani (or Sudimane) Spruit' man Democratic Republic. A specimen mined in south of Manuel's Kop (or Manual Beacon),13.5 km 1936 is reputed (Dr. P. Bancroft, Pers. Comm. NE of Mica Siding, about 25 km SW of Phalaborwa, 17.7.'19)to include a well terrrinated crystal 5 in. x 3 Transvaal,Republic of South Africa. It is on display n. (12.7 x 7.62cm); it is in The Bergakademie,Frei- in the museum of the Geological Survey, Pretoria, berg, German Democratic Republic. Guillemin South Africa. Note that Guillemin (1964' p.l) erro- (1964,p.4) reportedthat this academyhad a proustite neously statedthe massto be 160 kg. crystal, 8 cm X 3 cm, from Nieder Schlemma,Sax- d, This was recordedby Jahns(1953' p.569) to ony, Germany. be a crystal, howevet in the source reference Blake RICKWOOD: LARGEST CRYSTAT. ..mass,, (1884, p.341) clearly stated it to be a an( Ziegler (1914,p.656) was in no doubt rhat this was ar

verse orientation" and no doubt led to use of the

terial.to be "nearly pure columbite', a density of 5.2 ql1\'is more appropriate, so yielding a *iight of 825kg.

crystals were given. e2 "The world's finest specinens came from Wood's and Low's chromite minesnear the pennsyl_ vania-Maryland border, Lancaster County, lennsyl_ vania; crystals to 7,, (12.8 cm) acrosshave been ie-

lation; ProfessorA. H. Jahnshas stated (pers. Comm. 25.4.77)that the specimenwas accuratelymeasured. g The rhombohedraledges have been assrmed equal on one face so that the volume is the product of each of the dinensions and sin, 7g.0g". These three This museumpossesses two other noteable brucite setsof measurementsmay relate to the same crystal specimensfrom this localitv: and hence the data of Descloizeaux(1g47, p7lO1 (i) " . . ^ .urfu* with longest - . : dimen- may have been misquoted. Indeed, palache oi. sion - 19cm. ."; Frondel (1935,p.472). (1951,p.155) and Bancroft(t973,p.129) reporred "t the (ii) A block with crystals g l0 x cm; Guillemin crystal to be 20 x 6.5 feet (6.10 x l.9g pa_ (19M,p.3;1972, p.t03) n) and lache (1923,p.363) previously indicated rtimensions Sink6fia5 (1964,pp.339-340) reportedbrucite oc_ of6 x 2 m to have beengained curring from an unstatedac_ as "Fine white cleavageplates to 4" (10.2cm) count by Descloizeaux. x 7" (17.8 cm) in marble from Wakefield, . . .,,. Some other large specimensof calcite are: f A spherical shape was assumed for calcu_ (i) Two very large crystals recorded by Kelley RICKWOAD: LARGEST CRYSTALS 891

Table l. (continued)

CLASS ASST'|MED MINERAL, FORMULA6 DIMENSIONS(n) VOLT'ME MASS =--DENSIF REFERENcES OCC-1'RRENCE x2x3 (n-) (ks) (c/m-) (1884,P'34I) dl Colunbite *0.61 0.5l (0.rs9) (s.2) BLAKE - (Fe,Mn)(Nb,Ta)206 Jl*lNS (1953,P.s69). IngersoIl No.l, Black Hills, S.Dakota,U.S.A.

(ii) HYDROXTDES WEST(1932, er Ferroan-Brucite *0.51 (2.40) BERMAN6 ' (Mg,Fe) (oH) p. 313,Fis. l) . 2 John-Manville Mine, Asbestos, Quebec,Canada, (1964,P.339 e, Brucite (2.40) SINKANKAS - Ms(oH)2 l{ood's and lpw's Mines, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, U.s.A. (1935,P.472) el Brucite 0. 14 0.08 (1.I2x10 ) (o-27) (2.4o) FRoNDEL - Me(ffi) z Texas, Lancaster Couty, Pennsylvania,U.S . A,

4. HALIDES

f Fluorite (s.06) CaF2 (dim.) A Dyke, Petaca Dis- trict, NewMexico, U.S.A

(19,$0)from near the Harding Mine, Taos County, corded in the literature but Dietze (1891,p.446) and New Mexico. The larger crystal "... is estimatedto Osann (1894,p.584) did note that crystalsof daraps- haveweighed at leastthirty tons (33,069kg) or possi- kite, Nar(NO')(SO.)'HrO at Officino "Lautaro", bly as much as fofty tons (4,093 kg) before it was Pampa del Toro, Chile had crosssectional areas up partially mined." Cr. 365) and is shown in a photo- to I cm2. graph; Kelley (1940,Fig. 3, p.364). i As the habit is statedby Palacheet al. (1951) (ii) A polysynthetic scalenohedron of calcite to be nearly equant, the secondand third dimensions from Joplin, Missouri, U.S.A., with dimensions I m have been assumedequal. Note that Schaller (1930, x 40 cm is in the American Museum of Natural His- p.137) wrote that "some of the crystals are of im- tory, New York, U.S.A. (specimen32565); Guillemin mense size, the largest one seen measuring 8 feet (1972,p.103). Q.aa m) (c axis) by 3 feet" (0.91m). This crystal was h, This is specimen BM66038 in the British confirmed to exist by Dr. V. Morgan (Pers. Comm. Museum (Natural History), London, U.K. and is a 12.1.79)and is still in situin old underground work- bundle of subparallel fibrous crystals.The measure- ings now closedby Federal mine regulations(Dr. J. ments s'ere made by the author and Mr. P. Tandy Siefke,Pers. Comm. 22.4.80). (3l.10.80). j, If linear dimensions are calculated on the h2 This specimen is in the Musee de I'Afrique basisof the axial ratios -0.6331:l:0.6462' then the Centrale, Tervuren, Belgium; Dr. M. Deliens (Pers. greatestlength is 2.20 cm. Comm.20.8.79).Guillemin (1964,p.l) reportedthat j, Specimen 86453 in the British Museum this museum had a larger crystal (1.5 cm long) from (Natural History), London, U.K. The crystals are this occurrence; however, Dr. Deliens has indicated ". . . as much as 6 mm acrossand are honey-yellowto that during a recent re-examination of the entire col- reddish-brown in colour." "The crystals are very flat, lection it was found that the crystal was malachite and their contour is squarewith more or lessrounded and not gerhardtite. corners. They are formed of eight low pyramids, four There are few measurementsof nitrate crystals re- above and four below, directly above one another in RICKI{OOD: LARGEST CRISTALS

Table l. (continued) ct"Ass

ASSIJMED MI\ERAL, FORMULAG ---TdimnEIeE- DENSITY REFERENCES

5. CARBONATES,NITMTES,BORATES IODATES

(i) CARBONATES

g Cal cite (93 82) (254,252) CaC03 (2.71') xoSTOV(1968, p.s36)

He lgustadi r, Reydarfjtirdur, I ce land

Calcite ( 103.39) (280, CaC0" r87) (2.71) DESCLoIZEAUx(1947,p.770) He lgustadi r, Reydarfjdrdur, Iceland

Calcite *5 CaC0< 49 s.49 2.74 (79.06) I cdland (2 7r) DANA€ BRUSH(r872,p.6S)

( ii) NTTMTES

hr Soda nitre (nitratine) - 0-I74 NaNoj (2 2s) Taiapaca, ChiIe.

h2 Gerharctite _o-) .. -_.^-5- 0.003 o.ools o.o0l (4.sx10 ( r.5JXtU Lu2(NO3) (0H) J (3. 40) DELIENS(Pers. Com. 3 20.8.79) Likasi, Shaba, Zaire

(iii) BoMTES

i Kemite *2 .44 0 9l (0.e1) (2.02) (3.854) Na2B 1.908 SO{ALLER(1930,pF.137,147) 407.4H20 PALACHEet al (19st, Kraer, Ken Couty, p.336) California, U.S.A.

pairs. The pyramids ..Cleaved are so much rounded that the County, southern Utah, thus. . slabs are obtainablesix feet (1.83 m) in length, and two and a half feet (0.76m) in breadth. One of the longestper- fect prismsyet obtained extendsfifty one inches,. . ." (1.30m). ..The I, Reid (1925, p.l2) wrote most impor- k Palache(1923, p.363) wrote,,Gypsum Chile, tant bodies,both as regardsquantity and quality, oc- Braden Mine. . l0 ft. x 3 g in. (3 met€rsx cm) Lind_ cur at the Dundas Extended,West Comet, and Ade gren"; however, Lindgren (1933, ,.A p.6g5) stated laide Mines where crystals of hyacinth red and deep crystal of gypsum l0 feet long and 2 feet in diameter scarletcolour, l0 to 12 centimetreslong, with perfect was found in a cave...". A squarecross section has terminations,are found...". Subsequentlyin mine descriptions the only mention of such crystals is un- der the headingof Adelaide Mine (,.. . .3 to 6 inches (7.6-15.2cm) in length. . ;' p.79).A larer publication (TasmanianDept. Mines,1970,p.37), lists 10-12cm crystal of crocoite only at the Dundas Extended and West Comet Mines. 12 This crystal is in the collection of Edward Swoboda,Los Angeles,Catfornia, U.S.A. The sec- ond dimensionhas been determinedfrom the photo- (ii) Talmage(1893, p.86) describeda remarkable graph published by Bancroft (1973, p.t4l) and the set of large selenite (CaSOo.2HrO) crystals from a third dimensionhas been assumed.Sinkankas (1964, cave at South Wash, Fremont River canyon, Wayne p.403) wrote "The largest single crystals,sometimes RICKIIOOD: LARGEST CRYSTALS

Table l. (mntinued)

CLASS REFERENCES MINERAL,FORMULA O DIMENSIONS (N) VOLI'ME MASS OCCURRENCE 1 lx2\3 (n-) (kc)

(iv) IODATES DIETZE(1891'P.448) jr Lautarite (0'016) (0.016) (0.016) (4.36xl0-6) 0.020 4.59 ' Ca(IOa),

Panpa del Pique IiI, or Panpa Grove, Chile -R L - ( SMITH 6 PRIOR j) Schwartzenbergite 0.006 0.004 0.002 1.6xl0 LrsxrO-) 7 .39 - (19It, p.78) Pb-(I0-)c1-0. 5- J J J TANDY(PersCom. San Rafael Mine, Sierra 3.12.80) Corda, Caraoles, Chile.

6. SULPHATES,CTIROMATFS, I"OLYBDATES, TIINGSTATES

(i) SULPHATESAND RELATEDCOMPOUNDS *3.05 (2.32') PALAGIE(1923,P.363) k Gypsum 0 43 0 43 0. 564 CaSo4.2H2o LINDGREN( 19 30,P . 685) Braden Mine, Chile

(ii) GTRoMATES (s.99) REID(192s, 11 Crocoite *0.15 P.79) ^ PbCrO4

Adelaide Mine, Dundas, Tasnania, Australia.

terminated,reached lengths of 3y2" (8.9 cm) and di- Berry (1968,p.378) gave the samerange, they stated ametersof %" (0.95 cm). that the calculated value is 6.815 g/cm' and lower Crocoite crystalsfrom Beresovsk,Urals, U.S.S.R. and higher densitiesoccur due to substitution of Ca measuring8 to l0 cm long and I cm diameter are in for Pb and W for Mo, respectively.This calculated the Natural History Museum, Vienna, Austria; value has beenassumed here but note that Palacheet Guillemin (1964,p.3). al. (1951,p.1083) gave 6.88 g,/cm' as the calculated mr Key (1977,p.50) wrote "Thesereached the value. astounding size of 2 feet (0.61 m) in diameter, but rn2 This (Fig. 5) is specimen#40351 in the Na- they were so thin and fragile that damagewas severe: tional Museum of Natural Sciences,National Muse- a sample from this occurrenoe is on display in the ums of Canada, Ottawa. The largest crystal is American Museum." Pinch and Wilson (1977,p.34) chipped and the dimensions reported here were sup- similar$ described ". . . thin crystals up to 60 cm plied by Dr. J. D. Grice of that Museum and are across intergrown with each other," as occurring at more accuratethan thosegiven by Key (1977,p.50)' this locality. However, Sinkenkas(1964, p.434) had Wilson (1977,p.8l) published a photographof an- previously claimed "and in magnifisisnl reticulated other large crystal from Tsumeb, Namibia, clusters, probably the world's largest crystals, from and the part-owner has reported the dimensions to be Glove (Sunrise) Mine, Tyndall district, Santa Cruz 7.8-9.1 x 5.9-6.5 x 1.2-2.5cm (Mrs. M' Zweibel, County (Fig. 235). Some Glove crystals reach 4" Pers.Comm., Feb.79). (10.2 cm) on edge and consist of exceedinglythin Large wulfenite crystals also occur at M'Fouati, tablets of yellowish color, sometimescoated with des- Morocco and Guillemn(1972, p.2l) noted that some cloizite." Wulfenite crystals, with l0 cm edges,from 5-10 cm x I cm were in the Ecole Nationale Super- the Glove Mine, Amado, Arizona, U.S.A. comprise ieure des Mines, Paris, France. specimen 10,000of the ftseUing Collection in the n, Frondel (1935,p.473) statedthat this speci- Smithsonian Institution, ${a5hington, D.C., U.S.A. men is in the American Museum of Natural History, (Guillemin, 1972, p.122),. New York, U.S.A., but it has not proved possibleto Kostov(1968, p.487) cited a rangeof 6.5-7.0E/cmt obtain additional data. Further, he wrote the name for the density of wulfenite, but altlot'gh Mason and "Wada" after his entry relating to this crystal, but in 894 RICKWOOD: LARGEST CRYSTALI

Table l. (continued)

ASSUMED DIMENSIoNS(m) VOLUME DENSITY REFERENCES x2x3 rn3) (s/ cn3)

1, Crocoite - 0.11 o.Otl (0 O1r) (1.33x10-5) Pbcro4 (5.99) BANCR0FT(r973,p 140, 14r) Adelaide Mine, Dundas, Tasnania, Australia.

(iii) IIIOLYBDATES

nl Wul feni te *0.6l - PbMoO4 (dim) (6.8Is) KEY(1977, p.s0) Tsuneb, Nanlbia

n? Wulfenite - 0.083 0.07s o.o3o (I.87x10-a) PbMoo4 (r 27) (6.8ls) (EY (Is77,p.S0);GRTCE (Pers.Conn. S0.1.79) Tsueb, Nanibia (Figure S)

(iv) TUNGSTATES

n 0.33 r cawoo [6.r0) FRONDEL(193s,p.479)

Japan

n2 Scheelite - 0.20 0. 145 (9.60xr0 5.85S CaWO4 ) (6.r0) GUILLEMIN(r96a, p.3) (pers.Com., Kranat Pulai, perak, l'A.l'IDy 3. 12.89\ Ma Iaysi a

nj Wolfranite *0.20 - (Fe,Mn)wOa (7.3r) HEss (1909,p. ls2)

Good Luck Clain, Hill City, S.Dakota, U.S.A. the book on the minerals of Japan by that renowned mid. Subsequently,Mr. P. Tandy, British Museum (Natural History), U.K. has written (Pers. Comm., 3.12.80,13.2.81) to report that the baseedges are lZ cm long and the others are 14.5cm. Thus the calcu- lated volume is I128.77cm3 and for a density of 6.1 enonnous crystal 13" (33 cm) from tip to tip is re_ corded by the Japanesemineralogist Wada. Very large crystals also come from Korea, as at Taehwa.

be consideredto be adequatelysubstantiated. i2 This scheelite crystal from Kramat l\rlai, Malaya (Specimen BMl937, 98) was reported by ..octaedre Guillemin (1964,p.3) to be de 20 cm,,. In_ Fig. 5. The laryat MOLYBDATE crystal by volume and mass. Wulfenite, Tsumcb, spectionof the specimen(31.10.80) revealed that this Nsmibia. This specimenis No NMNS#40351 dimension was approximately in the National Museum of Natural Scicnces,Thc National correct for the distance Museums of Canada and photograph between the is rcproduccd by the most remote apicesof the squarebipyra- permission of Dr. J. D. Grice (Table l-mj. RICKWOOD: LA|IEST CRYSTALS 895

B/cm'the correspondingmass is 6685.50g. However, the actual weight is 5855 g for some of the corners are missing. An encrustation of fluorite complicates matters but ignoring it, for its mass is unknown, yields a calculatedvolume of 959.84cm3. n3 Hess(1909, p.152) described the wolframite to be mostly brilliant black and occasionally to have "the purplish rosiny appearanoeof hubnerite. Single cleavageblades reach perhaps8 inchesin length." n{ This is an elongate and truncated octahe- dron (Fig. 6), Specimen#97239 in the Geological Museum, Harvard University, Massachusetts,U.S.A. ProfessorC. Frondel (Pers.Comn.23.l.79) reported its weight as l8% lbs. (8.28kg) and this hasbeen con- firmed by Dr. C. A. Francis (Pers. Comm. 12.7.79) when the latter sent a sketch with edge lengths. Guillemin (1964, p.l) reported inaccurate dimen- sionsof 20 x l0 cm. Fig. 6. The largcst TUNGSTATE crysttl by mass. Schcelite, 01 Dr. J. J. Norton (Pers.Comm.27.ll.79)has Moctezuma,Sonora, Mexico. This photograph was supplied by, written "The crystal was one that had been mostly and is reproduced by permission of, Dr. C. A. Francis, mined, hencewas not seenin its entirety, but enough Mineralogical Museurn, Harvard Univcrsity, Cambridge, Massachusetts,U.S.A. (Specimen1*97239) (Table l-na). of it remainedto allow an estimateof its size." It was not photographed. The density of 3.00 g/crr3 has been derived from Kostov's (1968, p.a50) values of 3.ll g/cmi (amblygonite) and 2.98 g/cmi (mon- tebrasite)together with the stated composition Mo* Tinton depositsall have the appearanceof uniform (Norton et al., 1962,p.8l). material and as I remember each individual mass Ziegler (1913, p.1056) described mineral occur- had no obvious difference in cleavage in different r€ncesat the Hugo Mine, Keystone, South Dakota, parts of the body: We consideredthem crystals,but U.S.A. and wrote of amblygonite, LiAIPO.(F,OH): their rounded irregular outer shapecaused us to call "The latter mineral occurs quite irregularly in nod- them masses.I saw similar massesof amblygonite at ules and pockets,sometimes of great size.Thus one the Bikita mine in Southern Rhodesiain 1957 only shoot of practically solid amblygoniteshowed on the my recollection is they were even larger in size and a face of the open cut for a distanceof 15 x 22 x 40 ft. few had shapessuggesting crystal faces." (4.57x 6.71x 12.19m). Masses300 to 400Ib (136- Accordingly, it is worth recording here some ex- l8l kg) in weight are frequently found,. . . ." No- ceptionally large amblygoniteoccurrences: where did he imply that these were single crystals as (D Dr. L. R. Page (Pers. Comm., 6.6.80) dis- Norton et al. (1962, p.77) have reported. However, cussedamblygonite masses at Tinton, South Dakota, Dr. Norton has written (Pers. Comm. 18.9.79)"So U.S.A. and wrote "However, the miners told of tak- far as I can remember, all amblygonites I have seen ing out a "continuous" massfor about 125feet (38.1 were single crystals,whether small or large (I have m) on the SW side of the main pit. This is not shown seenprobably a dozenof 5 tons (4,536kg) or more). I in plate 40 of Prof. Paper 247 because those parts am not aware that amblygonite ever fonns large ag- that remained are under an overhang. To the SE, gregatesof small primary crystalsin pegmalilss.Cer- however,on SectionGG' a l5-foot mass(4.57 m) is tainly it doesnot at Hugo. But it is possiblethat large mapped-this I remember as one crystal, but crystalshave been found closeenough to each other rounded." to be regardedby miners as a single body, and re- (iD At the PeerlessMine, Keystone District, ported as suchby them to a geologist,who i5 unliksly Black Hills, South Dakota, U.S.A., Hess (1925, to be present long enough to see the whole situation p.289) reported an amblygonite mass 27 feet across as the amblygoniteis uncoveredduring mining." Dr. (8.23 m) and other dimensionswere said to be com- L. R. Page (Pers.Comm., 6.6.80)has written, "The parable but not fully exposed.Dr. J. J. Norton (Pers. amblygonite massesof the Hugo, Bob Ingersoll, and Comm. 18.9.79)suggested calculating the volume of RICKIIOO D: L/|RGEST CRYSTALS

Table l. (continued)

CLASS DIMENSIONS(n) VOL|TME MASS ASSWED REFERENCES DEI.6ITY MINERAL, FORMUI"Aq I x 2 x 3 [n J (e/*3) OCCURRENCES

t4 Scheelite 0.18 (0.00r36) (6.10) FRONDEL(Pers .Com. CaWO4 23.r.79) FMNCIS (Pers. Com. Moctezum, Sonora, Mexico 12.9.79)(Figure 6)

7. PHOSPHATES,ARSENATES, VANADATES

(i) PHOSPHATES

*7.62 or Anblygonite 1.83 (s4.02) (r02,060) (3.00) NoRTON,PAGE € BROBST LiAlP04(F'0H) (1962,p.8r) Hugo Mine, Keystone, S.Dakota, U.S.A.

*3.66 "2 Triphyllite 0 .61 (0.6r ) ( r .36) (4,868) (3.58) FRONDEL(Pers.Com. Li (Fe, Mn)P04 1978) Palemo Pegnati te NewHmpshire,U.S.A.

01 Triphyl li.te *2.44 - 1.83 t.22 (s .4s) (19,5rr) (3.58) I'fOORE(Pers.Com. Li (Fe,Mn)POa rs. r. 79) Palemo No, I Pegnatite, New Hmpshire, U.S.A.

(ii) ARSENATES

Legrandite *>0. P1- 15 (4.0r) EIEREY (Pers.Com. Znr(Asol,,214trO 9.r.79)

OjueIa l4ine, Mexico.

such by assuming a1 slliFsoidal shape; if the am- has written. . . "The Dan Patch pegmatite (Black blygonite is equidimensional then it would weigh Hills, South Dakota) had a triphylite crystal (or nod- about 875,000kg. ule) which I saw in 1968 and it was about l0 feet (iiD At Beecher Lode, Custer District, Black (3.05 m) across.At PalermoNo. I pegmatite ,,A in New Hills, SouthDakota, U.S.A. 200-ton(1g1,000 kg) Hampshirerecent (1975-1977) mining by the owners mass(of amblygonite)is said to have been removed uncovereda triphylite with sarcopsideexsolution la- from the north pit,.. ."; Joralemon(1953, p.70). mellae and part of it was trenched out. When I last (iv) At Dike No. l, Bob Ingersoll Mine, Keys- saw the remains the "crystal" was at least 8 feet wide tone District, Black Hills, South Dakota, U.S.A.- (2.44m),6 feet deep(1.83 m) and 15 feet long (4.5? "According to Mr. Johnson,one amblygonite mass m), but it wasn't fully exposed.I took a crude mea- had a surfacelength of about 30 ft., (9.14m) an aver- surement by footstep pacing. The only problem is agewidth of about 4 ft., (1.22m) and extendedfrom that it could have been more than one single crystal the surfacenearly to the adit level."-Hanley (1953, but I have seen crude crystals of the same species p.78). The third dimensioncould have been as much measure6' x 8' x 4' (1.83x 2.4 x 1.22m)." plate as 30 ft. (9.14rr),judging from sectionII, on Z, The largest of these "Crystals" had a volume of and hencethe weight could have been about 160,000 20.4 m' and a mass in excessof 73,000kg, but as kg. doubt was implied about it being a single crystal this 02 ProfessorC. Frondel (pers. Comm. l97g) specim.enhas been excluded from the tabulation. stated that this crystal was only partially exposed Some other notably large phosphate crystals are: when he saw it, so the third dimension has had to be (i) an apatite, Car(POo)r(F,Cl,OH)found at the assumed. Aetna Mine, Quebec,Canada which was reported to 03 ProfessorP. B. Moore (Pers.Comm. 15.1.79) be 7 ft x 4 ft diam. and to weigh 6 tons (2.13 m x RICKWOOD: LARGEST CRYSTALS E97

Table l. (continued)

ASSTIMEI) DIMENSIoNS(n) VOLUME MASS DENSITY REFERENCES

lx2x3 ('3) (Id tr/g".1

Minetite 0.06 (o 027) (3.79x10-s) (7.24) wILSoN(r977,p.62) P2- (Figure 7) Pb, (AsO4)3Cl dian. Tsueb, Nmibia.

iii) VAMDATES

qr (6.88) SINKANKAS(1964, ' Pbs(v04) p.423) 3cr Djebel Mahseur, near Oudjha, Morocco.

o^ Vamdinite Pbs(vo4)3cl o.12 0.04 (1 .66xrO-4) (1.14) (6.88) GUILLEMIN(1964, dian. P'r) Abenab, 28kn N of Grootfontein, Nilibia.

8. SI LICATES

(rJ Nesosilicates

tl Garnet 2.3 ( 37,s00) (3.7s) BARTfl(1930,P.r28) (Fe,Mg,MBCa) BARfi (1962'P.300) 3 (Ar, Fe) 2Sig0I2 Kristiansand, S.Norway

l.22ndiam., 5443kg)-Anonymous (1889,p.6; 1890, p, Dr. P. G. Embrey wrote (Pers. Comm., p.159).If a hexagonalcross section is assumed,which 1.1.79),"I have seen4" (10.2 cm) prisms, although would accord with the description that "It is perfectly we have none of this size, and I believe a specimenis formed." (Anonymous, 1889, p.6), then the calcu- known with 6" (15.2 cn) prisms or perhapslonger". lated volume is 2.06m3 and the massis 6548kg for a Wilson (1978,p.35) wrote about a. . . "remarkable density of 3.18E/cm'. The published estimatedmass single 8 inch (20 cm) spray of legrandite. . ." but no of 6 tons (assumedshort tons and thus equal to 5443 details are presently available. kg; Anonymous, 1890,p.159) yields a density of 2.64 Stellate sprays of erythrite, Cor(AsOo)2'8H2O, g/crrt, which is too low. with "acicular needlesto 4" .. . (10.2cm) were stated (ii) amblygonite, LiAIPO.(F,OH), from North by Sinkankas (1964, p.409) to have been found in Morning Star Mine, San Domingo Wash, N.E. of cavities in the Grube Rappold Mine, Schneeberg, Wickenburg,Arizona, U.S.A. The largestcrystal was Saxony,Germany. stated(Professor R. H. Jahns,Pers. Comm.,26.10.77) pz This specimen is in the collection of Keith to have a "... maximum exposeddimension of five Proctor, Colorado Springs, U.S.A.: the photograph feet eight inches" (1.73 m). Note that previously (Fig. 7) was previously published by Wilson (1977, Jahns(1952, p.40) describedcrystals up to six feet in p.62). The diameter between prism faces of this hex- diameter(1.83 m) but the sourcewas unspecifiedand agonal crystal has been estimated from the photo- the largest crystal mentioned in the detailed mine de- graph. A slightly smaller crystal (2 in. long x I in. di- scriptions was only five feet in diameter (1.52 m); ameter:5.1 cm X 2.5 cm diam.) from this locality was Jahns(1952, p.8l; 1953,p.569). mentionedby Key (1977,p.49). (iii) a vivianite, Fe'(POo)r'8H2O,crystal from An aggregateof novacekite, Mg(UOr'AsOo), Anloua, Camerounwhich is 1.30m long; Guillemin '9H2O, crystals,measuring 6 cm in length is shown (1964,p.2; 1972,p.2l). This specimenis in the Ecole in a photograph by Bariand and Bariand (1976, Nationale Superieuredes Mines, Paris, France. p.120); the occurrenceis at Brumado, Bahia State, RICKWOOD: I/IRGEST CRYSTALS

aggregate.The density was calculated,not assumed, and is almost certainly smaller than the true value; the reported weight (37.5 tons) was taken to be in metric tonnes.A sketchaccompanies both references and from it the maximum dimensionof the garnet is measuredas 2.3 m, a value incompatible with the statedvolume estimate(10 m') even if the is included. t2 Subsequently,Kolderup (1960,p.74) stated "Here a giant crystal, measuring90 cm, was found" . . . , and Kostov (1968,p.318) recorded "In the west- ern part ofNorway garnethas been found as porphy- roblasts with a diameter of I m in amphibolite". Theseaccounts probably relate to the samespecimen which is the very imperfect dodecahedral crystal, (Fig. 8) mentioned in Table l, and which is kept at the Natural History Museum, Bergen,Norway. Note that the volume has been calculated from the re- ported massand density. 13 Of necessity,a cubic shapewas assumedbut Fig. 7. The largestIRSEIVITE crystal by volume and mass as this is most improbable for topaz the true mass that has beenautlenticated. , Tsumeb,Namibia from the and volume will be less than the calculated values. collection of Keith Proctor. photograph The is reproduced by A transparent perfect crystal of topaz from Minas permissionof the photographerDr. Wendell E. Wilson, Editor of The Mineralogical Record and was originally published on p. 62 of Geraes,Brazil which weighs3@ kg and is 80 X 60 X volume 8(3) ofthatjournal (Table l-p2). 60 cm is in the American Museum of Natural His- tory, New York, U.S.A.; Guillemin (1972,p.l}3). ta The form was statedto be roughly spherical and the calculated mass of 1.70 short tons accords Brazil and the specimenis in the University of paris with the reported value of "over 1.5 tons". (Levin, (Sorbonne), Paris, France. Dr. Bariand (pers. 1950,p.546). The density is the mean of ten values Comm., 28.11.80)has written that the largestcrystal for type XH garnetsas given by Levin (1950,Table has a length of 5 cm. l). g, Young (1976, p.243) recorded vanadinite s This crystal is roughly circular in cross sec- crystalsat Mibladen, Morocco thus, "I would say the tion and consistsof a cylinder 49 cm x 37.8cm diam- largest crystals never exceed two inches (5.1 eter, betweentwo truncated cones,32 cm and 33 cm cm). . . . that would be exceptional". high with smallestdiameters of 17.8and 13.9cm re- gz This is the largestcrystal on specimen4525 spectively(Fig. 9). All dimensionshave been calcu- in the museumof the GeologicalSurvey of South Af- lated and are basedon the 40 cm rule included in the rica, Pretoria, R.S.A. It was vanadinite but now is photograph taken by Staffan Waerndt. The volume pseudomorphed by crystals, pbZn has been calculated assuming the above idealized (VO.)(OH); Guillemin (1964,p.l). The smaller di- form. The calculated mass of 375 kg is slightly larger mension has been assumedto be the diameter of a than the 300 kg estimatedby Dr. B. Lindquist (Pers. hexagonalcross section. Comm. 19.1.79)who reported that the "crystal is Dr. P. G. Embrey has written (pers. Comm., rather flattened so I prefer to estimateits weight by 9.2.79) about a similar crystal from this locality transforming it into a box shape, the edgesbeing 55, which is specimenBMl933, 308 in the British Mu- 15, and 90 cm respectively.Assuming density 4.0 the seum(Natural History), London, U.K. It is 8 x 4 cm, mass should then be 297 kg,1.e., around 3@ kg." has a massof 324g, and before polishing was coated (13.2.79).The crystal is on display at the Naturhisto- with descloizite. riska Riksmuseet,Stockholm, Sweden. rr This is an irregularly shapedshell of garnet Other large sorosilicatecrystals are: around a block of limestone,and it may be a crystal (i) those recorded by Sinkankas(1964, p.521) E9 RICKWOOD: LARGEST CRYSTALS

Table l. (continued)

DIMEIISIOIIS (n) VOLIME ASSUMED REFERENCES DENSITY (g/cn J

I 0. 7 o.4 3.98 KoLDERUPand RoSEI',IQVIST Gamet (r9s0); ( Fe, Mg,Mn, Ca) (Al, Fe) 3 2 ROSEI.TQVTST(19sr) sisotz (Figure 8)

Gjdlanger, l{. Notray

Topaz *0.91 (0.91) (0.91) (2,677) (3.ss) BANDY(19s1, P.s2l); A125iO4(F'0H) J/rHt.ls(1953, p.569) 2 Ribaue-Alto Ligonha district, Mozanbique (1950,pp. s2o,524, Garnet *0.9 I (o.39s) (r,s44) LEVIN s40) (Fe,Mg,Mn,Ca)a(Al, Fe)? (dim) sisorz

Barton Deposit, Gore Mt., Adircndacks, U.S.A.

(ii) SOROSILICATES (4.0) LINDQVIST(Pe!s. Com. 5 Orthi te r. 14 0.38 (0.0938) (37s) (Figure 9) (Ca, Ce) (Al, Fe) (dim) 19.1.79) , a si30r2 (o 'oH)

Arendal, Noflay

being slender blades of allanite, (Ca,Ce,La,Na), was measured between corners. Jensenand Frigstad (Al,Fe,Mn,Be,Mg),O(OH) (SiO.) (Si,O') which at (1967,p.l6) recordedthe same length (18 m) and a the Rutherford Mines, Amelia, Amelia County, Vir- diameter of 5 m, but the latter is probably erroneous ginia, U.S.A. attain 16 inches(40.6 cm) in length. in view of the similar estimatesof the two local geol- (ir) Sinkankas (op.cit., p.520) also cited two oc- ogistswho saw the crystal in 1964. currences of epidote, Ca'AlrFe SirO"(OH), from A taperedberyl crystal33 feet long (10.06m) and which crystals 12 inches long (30 cm) have been ob- 6 feet (1.83 m) in diameter was recordedby Stevens tained. (1972, p.50) as having been found in 1950 at the (iii) Bjdrlykke (1935,p.255) in writing about or- Bumpus Quarry, Albany, Oxford County, Maine, thite, (Ca,Ce)' (Al"Fe)rSi3Orr(O,OH)from lveland, U.S.A. Setesdal, S. Norway, stated "It usually occurs in The crystal reported by Waldschrtidt (1920) as large ill-defined crystals up to a weight of 100 kgms being the largest known of beryl came from the Bob and more ..." but no specific locality was given. Ingersoll mine, South Dakota, U.S.A., and had a di- However, in detailed descriptions of 108 pegmatite ameterof l.l7 m (46 in.) and a known lengthof I'12 oocurrenoeshe nowhere mentioned these crystals but m (44 in.). did write "The orthite was present in large ill-defined rr1 Spencer(1928, p.259) recorded this crystal *47 crystals"-Locality 58 Mllland 7 Gt.23l) and "Or- as being feet in length with a cross section 3 to 5 thite was abundanl in large ill-defined crystals."- feet. and from it 90 tons of material was quarried Locality 99 KAbuland I ("Amerika") 0.240). . . .". These data are a curious admixture of those for t The reported mass(estimated as 250 tons) re- severalcrystals describedby Schaller (1916, p.138). quires a density of only 1.75 g/cm' if metric units The second dimension (80 cm) has been estimated and a hexagonal cross section are assumed. The from the photograph(Fig. l0) and a squarecross sec- length and weight were confinned by Dr. A. Gsell tion was assumed.This was the longest crystal dis- (Pers.Comm.,4.5.77) but he stateda slightlysmaller covered at this locality, but it was thinner than the diameter of 3 m which is consistent if he measured subsequentlymentioned specimen which yielded the between hexagon edges and if the larger diameter greatest volume and mass. 9m RICKIYOO D: LARGEST CRYSTALS

p.l4l), Spence(1929, p.69) and Hewitt (t968, p.29) recordeda phlogopite crystal from this mine with a stateddiameter of "over 9 fee|" (2.7a @. v2 Holland (1902,p.63) noted that this speci- men was ". . . l0 feet acrossthe basalplanes and up to 15 feet acrossthe folia." Sinkankas(1964, p.482) wrote "The world's record (muscovite,KAlr(AlSi3O,") (OH)r,) for sizeis held by a singlecrystal from the Inikurti Mine, Nellore, India which measuredl5 feet (4.57m) in length and l0 feet (3.05 m) in diameter and delivereda total of 85 tons (77,lll kg) of muscovite".A densityof 2.79 E/cm' accordswith this data, and is within the range given by Kostov(1968, p.361) i.e.,2.76-3.0 g/cm'and in- dicateslittle substitution by . A hexagonalcross section,l0 feet betweenapices, has beenassumed for Fig. 8. The largest.IVESOS/LICATE crystal by length, volume calculation purposes. and mass that has been authenticated.Garn€t, Selvik, north of Gjy'langer Molle, Fjaler herred, Sogn of Fjordane fylke, Norway{IO0 x 70 x 40 cm). photograph provided by, and is reproducedby permissionof, ProfessorB. A. Sturt, Universitv of Bergen,Norway (Table l-rr).

Waldschmidt(1920, p.ll) wrote .,At the Etta Mine, . . . , spodumenecrystals have beenmined that were more than fifty feet (15.24 m) long and from four to six feet (1.22-1.83m) in diameter."However, this claim seemsdoubtful. u2 Kostov(1968, p.340) recorded rounded met- ric measurements(13 m x 2m x I m) and a massof 65 tons (58,967kg. if short tons) from which an im- probable density of 2.27 g/cm3 is derived. Ziegler (1913,p.1054;1914, p.655) recorded a smallercrystal, 42 feet long and 5 ft. 4 in. maximum diameter (12.g m X 1.63m maximum diameter)which,.would yield 90 tons (81,647kg) of spodumene"(1914. p.655) but would necessitatean impossibly high density of 4.g g/cm3 rf the "diameter" is the diagonal of a square crosssection. The tabulated crystal was decayedand yielded only 37 tons (33.6 tonnes) of spodumene; Hess(l9ll, p.650). vr Calculations have been based on an as- sumedhexagonal cross section. Palache (1923, p.363) ,.. estimatedthe total weight as . . not less than 90 tons" (81,647kg) but this is far too low for the stated dimensions.He also attributed the data on this speci- men to Ellsworth, but no mention of it can be found Fig. 9. The largestSOROSILICATE crystal by length, volume and in the numerouspublications of the latter (Mr. H. R. mass. Orthite, Arendal, Norway. This crystal is in the collection of the Naturhistoriska Riksmuseet, Steacy,Pers. Comm., 4.11.77,20.1.78; professor Stockholn and the photograph by Staffan Waerndt is reproduced by permission: the L. G. Berry,Pers. Comm., 3.2.78). de Schmid(1912, ruler is 40 cm (Table l-s). RICKIaOOD: LARGEST CRYSTALS 901

Table l. (continued)

ASSUMED DIMENSIONS(n) MASS DENSIfi REFERENCES x2x3 {;f (kc) (g/c'3)

(iii) cYclosILrcATEs MICIIEL(Pers.Com. t BeryI 18 3.5 ( 579,480) 4.5.76) Be-AI ^Si - O.^ (dim) J Z O ld

l.4alaki a1im, l.,lalagasY

(iv) INOSI LICATES SCHALLER(1916,P.138 ur Spodunene *14.33 0.80 (s.i7) (28,427) , - Plate VA) LiA1Si2O6 (Figure l0)

Etta Mine, S.Dakota, U.S,4.

HESS(19Ir, p.6sr) u. Spodunene *12.80 1.83 0.91 (66,0s2) ' Lintsirou

Etta Mine, S.Dakota, U.S.A.

(v) PHYLLOSILICATES

* (2.8) PALACHE(1923, v, Phlogopite I0. 06 4 .27 ( r19. r4) (333,592) P.363) ' KMe-tAIsi-0.^l (dian') -J' J IU- (F,0H)2

Lacey Mine, Loughborough TownshiP, ontario, Canada

v3 Fersman(1931, p.l19) statedthat a biotite 2,337square feet (2l7.ll m'), yet individual cleavage crystal, K(Mg,Fe), (AlSi3O,o)(OH,F), with an area planesextend unbroken acrossthe entire mass,which of 7 m2 had been found in a feldspar mine at Evje, is probably x 5inglecrystal'. Thesedimensions corre- Norway and Barth, who worked on this area, men- spond to the open cut area on Section CC' of their tioned 2-3 m flakes of both muscovite and biotite Plate 7, but the entire area of microcline shown on (1928,p.464) and specificallygave Rosas,Iveland as that sectionhas a maximum length of I 18 feet (35.97 a locationfor 3 m long biotite flakes(1931, p.ll8). m), a width of 45 feet (13.72m) and the surfacearea v4 Harding (194, pp.3+35) wrote "One large is29l2 sq. feet (270.5fr\ Crosssections through the mica crystalof phenomenalsize, discovered by Justin pegmatite are drawn at 35 foot (10.67 m) intervals Purdy and extractedby Purdy Mica Mines in 1943, and crosssectional areas of microcline age nil (EE'), was the source of spectacularsheets of clear mus- 141.3m2 (DD'), 2705 m2 (CC'), ll.l2 m'?(BB') and covite with dimensions greater than 5 by 8 feet. One 20.15m2 (A,A'). Thus continuity of microcline seems sheet from this huge crystal, one of the largest ever probable from 3 m south of EE', as indicated on the encountered in the history of Ontario mica-mining, plan, to somewheresouth of AA'; a o;1i6rrm dis- was secured by the Royal Ontario Museum, To- tance of 138feet (a2.06m). However, Dr. L. R. Page ronto". This, the largest authenticated phyllosilicate (Pers. Comm., 6.6.80)has stated that "This deposit is shown in Figure ll; Harding (1944, p.34) pub- had been minsf, for about 125 feet (38.10m) at right lished a photograph of a similar specimenwhich may angles to the cleavage.The miners cliaimed that the have come from the same crystal. cleavage had remained the same througbout the pit wr Hanley et al. (1950,p.60) wrote "The mass lenglh. I have always maintained that this was the of mierocline exposed in the north face of the main largest crystal I'd ever seen". As the north face of the open-cut is about 75 feet (22.86 m) wide and 40 feet open cut is shown as being about l0l feet (30.78m) (12.19 m) thick at the maxinum and has an area of north of AA', the microcline is likely to have ex- RICKI{OOD: L/IRGEST CRYSTALS

Table l. (continued)

CLASS DIMEI\lsIONS(N) v0ul.tE ASSU{ED REFERINCES MINEML, FORMTJLAq DENS-iiY-.'T- : lx2x (n (g/cn J v? Muscovite *4.57 - S.Os (2.79) HoLLAND(1902,p.63) KA12(Alsi3oto) (ofl) (dian. 2 ) SINKANKAS(1964, p.482) Inikurti Mine, Nellore, India.

v1 Biotite - - 3 (3.0) BARTH(1931, p.rr8) K(Mg,Fe)r(Atsi30t0)(oft,F)2

RosBs, IveIand, hovay.

v4 ' Muscovite KAr2(AlSi3orO)(oH)2 *>2,44 >1.52 (2.79J HARDII{G(r944,.p.54) (Fi8ure Il) Purdy l,tica Mines, 0ntario, Canada.

(vi) TEKToSILICATES

wr Mi.cmcline ' '49.38 KAlSi308 35.97 13.72 (6214.4t) ( rs,908,890) (?.56) HANLEY,HEINRICH€ PAGE, ( r9s0,p.60) Devils Hole Beryl Mine PAGE(Pers.Com., 6.6.80) Frenont Couty, Colorado, U.S.A.

w? Perthite - (K,Na)A1Si3o8 *r0.67 4.57 (89 .23) (230,2r3) (2.s8) NORTON,PAGE C BROBST (1962, pp.6a,6s) Hugo Mine, Keyston€, S. Dakota, U.S.A.

wl Feldspar >lO BRdGGER(1890, p.zsl); BRoGGER(1894, p- 67). Kure, S. of Mass, KEMP(1924, p.706). Noflay

tended a further 24 'w2 feet (7.32 nS south of AA,. As the composition of this perthite is Ab, Hence, the probable maximum length of microcline (Norton et al., 1962,p.65) the density is approxi- is 138+ 24: 162feet (42.05 + 7.32: 49.3gm); the mately 2.58 g/cni (Kosrov, 1968, Fig. 396). This maximum breadth and width have been taken as crystal was carefully measured by Drs. J. J. Norton thoseshown on sectionCC,. It is much more dimcult and L. R. Pagefor it occurred on a corner ofa quarry to estimatethe original volume for the easternpor_ wall and all three dimensions could be determined. tion of the microcline has been truncated bv erosion Dr. Norton wrote (Pers.Comm. 18.9.79)that prior to and mining. Simple surface reconstruction,to allow measurement". . . a sizeable part of this crystal had for mining, increases the area of nicrocline from already been removed by mining . . .', . Subse- 20.15m'to 67.3m2 on AA, and from ll.l2 rr, to quently, it was completely mined out and it was 167.7m2 on BB'; however,compensation for erosion never photographed. is too. subjective to be of value. Accordingly, using Norton et al. (1962, p.64,65) described perthite, areas shown as the reconstnrctions on AA; to DDa (K,Na)AlSirO., in Zone 3a of the Hugo pegmatite, and assumingzero ..Largest arcaat the presumedtermination Keystone,South Dakota, U.S.A. thus: crys- points, the total volume has been calculated (using tal observedwas 35 by 15 by 6 foot (10.62x 4.57 x equations for a cone and its frustrum) to be 6214.41 1.83m), but much larger crystalswere exposedin the mi ft.,) Q19,459.8 and the mass to be 15,90g,g90early yearsof mining (G. M. Schwartz,oral commu- kg(17,536.6short rons). nication, 1948)." "The largest crystal observed con- This may have been the largest crystal ever discov_ tained an estimated 250 tons of perthite.', (226,796 ered but it cannot be regarded as fully authenticated, ke). particularly in respect to the microcline having been Dr. Norton wrote (Pers. Comm. 1g.9.79)that one single crystal throughout. G. M. Schwartz, an eminent geologist,had said to RICKWOOD: LARGEST CRYSTALS 903

Fig. 10. The largcst INOSILICATE crystal by length Spodumenc,Etta Mine, South Dakota, U.S.A.-{14.3 m long) Photograph copied from Plate VA, U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 610, (1916) and reproducedby permissionof the Director, U.S. Geological Survey (Table l-ur).

him ". . . that he had in the 1920'sseen the cleavage Fig. I !. Thc largest authenticated PHYLLOSILICATE crystzl of a single perthite crystal over the whole face then by length. Purdy Mica Mines. Ontario, Canada. This cleavage being minsd. This crystal would have been several flake is in the Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto, Canada and the times as large as the one I reported." photograph has been supplicd by, and is reproduced by permissionof, Dr. J. A. Mandarino (Table l-va). The Bikita and Nolan Mines, Zimbabwe, are cut into a pegmatite body which ". . . contains some of the largest crystals I have ever seen--?erthite crystals more than 40 feet (12.19 m) long"; Dr. L. R. Page by Andersen(1931), Barth (1931,1947,1960) and (Pers.Comm., 6.6.80),Surprisingly, however, Wilson Bjlrlykke (1935).Both Barth (1931,p.l 14)and Bjlr- and Martin (1964)do not mention these. lykke (1935,p.217-219) recorded microcline crystals w3 These reports have been kept becausethe with faces up to 6 m in length, and weighing more above perthite is a mineral intergrowth and could be than 100 tons, at Tveit, Norway and specifically at disputed as a single crystal. Tveit-3, one of six pegmatitesin the area. Barth wa The reported weight is assumed to have (1928,p.al9) also recorded6 m long microcline crys- been in long tons. Hurlbut (1968,p.l4) recordedthe tals at Rudjord in Lyngdal, Norway. dimensionsas 30 x 30 feet (9.14x 9.14m). Other notable tektosilicate crystals are: w5 Fersman(1931, p.l 19)recorded a 100tonne (i) The largest quartz (SiOr) crystal which has microcline, KAISi3OE,crystal from Norway which been substantiatedwas found at Manch6 Felipe, was l0 m long, Barth (1928,p.4O4) mentioned micro- near ltapor6, Goiaz, Brazil (Frondel, 1962, p.244) cline crystals between 5 and l0 n in length as occur- and was 20 feetlong (6.10m), 5 feet (1.52m) acrossa ring in dykes in Iveland, Norway, and Barth (1947, prism face and was estimated to have weighed over p.53) (1960, p.40) also describedpegmatites cutting 44 tons (39,916 kC.). If the crystal was regular in amphibolite at Evje, Norway as being ".. . very shape, and lacked pyramid faces, then the volume coarse-grained,feldspar and quartz, SiOr, crystals at- would have been 36.78 m3 and the mass 97,479kg; laining 8 metres in length". These are all general the weight estimate is lessthan half of this calculated statements which cannot be found in detailed de- value and must be questionable.Campbell (1946, scriptions of the feldspar mines of this area as given p.797) described qvartz "Crystals uP to 6 m long with 9(X RICKWOOD: LARGEST CRYST'ALS

Table l. (continued)

CLASS DII"IENSIONSrn) VOLI'ME MASS ASSI,MED REFERENCES MINERAL,FORMULA q DENSITY 1 OCCURRENCES lx2x3 (nJ (ks) (g/.r3)

Mi crcc Iine (4.27) (4.27) (4.27) >200,000 (2.s6) BJORLYKKE[1935,pp.2I3. KAlSi308 240)

Frikstad 9 (r'Steli'r) Pegnatite, Iveland, Setesdal, S.Noryay

s Orthoclase * 4 10 l0 ({0.40) ((3e.6s) l0 1,605 (2.s6) LINDGREN(1933, p.7s4); KAlSi3OS Kosrov (1968, p. ss)

Ura1s,U.S.S.R.

ws Perthitic *9. - Microcline 14 3.66 2.13 (7r.2s) ( 185,250) HEss (1933, p.455) (K,Na)Arsij08

TVeit, Iyeland district, N. of Kristiansand, Noryay

ORGANICMINERAI^S -s) Whewe11i te 0.05s 0.055 0. 015 (c.l .3xlo (c .0.030) (2.23) GUILLEMIN(I96s,pp 1,2 ) CaC2O 4'H20 HOFI,,IANN(Pe6 -Conn. s.3.80) Zwickau, Saxony, Ge many ( Figure u) -) x)- llhewellite 0 .0s4 0.039 0.0085 ( 7.4x10 0.0165 (2.23) SVENEK(Pers.Coru. CaCr0r:Hr0 4.9.79)

Pchery, Theodor Mine, Kladno District. Czechoslovakia

Footnotes: * InPerial neasurenents have been converted to netric. N.B, lO00 ks = I tonne = I.IO23l3 short tons = 0.984206 long tons. ( J Calculated or estimated va1ue. Unless otheflise stated, the densities have been estinated from values given by KOSTOV(1968).

the prism face 1.5m wide were seen,"some of which x2 This twinned crystal was obtained from coal were shown in the photographs that accompaniedhis deposits25 km west of Prague,and is specimen6185 paper. in the Prirodovedecke Muzeum, Prague, Czech- (ii) Dr. D. D. Hogarth (Pers.Comm.25.1.78) ob- oslovakia. The twin was reported by Dr. J. Svenek served a scapolite ((Na,Ca).[Al,Si)SirO,](Cl,CO,)) (Pers. Comm. 4.9.79) to weigh 33 g; this and the crystal, now concealedbeneath the Gatineau Park- smallest dimension have been halved to estimate the way, at Pinks Lake, Gatheau Park, Canada which size of a single crystal. he conservativelyestimated to be at least 15 feet by 2.5 feet (4.57x 0.76m). Discussion x1 This is specimen 27153 in the Bergak- It may be seen from Table I that the largest au- ademie,Freiberg, D.D.R., which is a twinnsd crystal thenticated crystal whether considered by length, that weighs 100 g with the matrix. Dr. F. Hofinann volume, or mass is the beryl (18 m, 143 m3, and' (Pers.Comm. 5.3.80)reported the thicknessto be 30 379,480kg respectively) from Malakialina, Malagasy mm, so 1'e13 single crystal this has been halved. The Republic. However, the mysterious orthoclase crystal mass has been estimated assumingthat the matrix found in the Urals, U.S.S.R.(Lindgren, 1933,p.754) weighs roughly a third of the total; the volume corre- could have been the biggest by volume and mass for sponds to the estimated mass. This crystal is shown the calculated depth of only 40 cm seemsimprobable in Fig. 12. The density was obtained from PaLacheer in conjunction with two other dinensions each of ten al. (1951,p.ll00) who noted "Among the natural oc- meterc.A depth of only 1.44m would yield the great- currenoes may be mentioned Burgk near Dresden, est volume and 1.49m would yield the greatest mass Saxony, where crystals up to severalinches in size oc- as well; both values would be plausible. The micro- cur with calcite in the footwall of a coal seam." cline deposit in Colorado, U.S.A. may well have con- RI CKWOOD: LARGEST CRYSTALS

and mineralogists.Included in this paper are photo- graphs of 12 of these crystals (sulphur, stibnite, ga- lena, corundum, wulfenite, scheelite,mimetite, gar- net, orthite, spodumene,muscovite and whewellite). Photographic evidence has been published for two additional crystals from this list, ferroan-brucite (Berman and West, l932,Fig.l) and crocoite (Ban- croft, 1973,p.lal) and sketchesof a garnet (Barth, 1930,p.128; 1962, p.300) and whewellite(Guillemin' 1964,p.22) have been printed. The largestcrystal of which photographicevidence exists is the 14.3m (47 foot) long spodumene(Fig. 9) from the Etta Mine, South Dakota,U.S.A. In 1928,Spencer cogently discussedthe problems and philosophy of museumsin regard to large crys- tals. However, it is unfortunate that not even photo- graphsexist of most of theseunique specimens.

Acknowledgments I have been aidcd in making this compilation by rccciving in- formation from many people.In particular, I would like to record my gratitude{o: Dr. M. Deliensin Belgium; ProfessorI. Kostov in Bulgaria; ProfessorL. G. Berry, Dr. J. D. Grice' Dr- D. D. Hogarth, Dr. J. A. Mandarino and Mr. H' R. Steacyin Canada; Dr. J. Svenekin Czechoslovakia;Dr. P. Bariand and Dr' A. Gsell in France;Dr. F. Hofmann in the German DemocraticRepublic; Fig. 12. The largestORGANIC crystal by length, volume and Dr. M. Hlnisch in Germany; Dr. P. G. Embrcy, Mr. J' P. Fuller' mass.Whewellite, Zwickau, Saxony,Germany. This is specimen and Mr. P. Tandy in Great Britain; Dr. V. dc Michele in ltaly; Dr. n the Bergakademie,Freiberg, D.D.R. and the photograph 27153 J. A. Dons, Mr. I. Hernes,and ProfessorB. A. Sturt in Norway; is reproducedby permissionof Dr. F. Hdfmann (Table l-x;). Dr. C. Anhausser,Mr. M. Keyser,and the Director of the Geolog- ical Survey, in South Africa; Dr. B. Lindquist in Sweden;Dr. P' Bancroft.Dr. C. A. Francis,Professor C. Frondel, Mrs. N. C. Har- R. H. Jahns, Mr. A. Y' Johnstone,Mrs. E. M. tained the largestcrystal ever discoveredbut there is ris, Professor Learned, ProfessorS. B. Levin, Dr. B. Mason, ProfessorP. B. insufficient evidenceto support that claim. The vol- Moore, Dr. H. Michel, Dr. V. Morgan, Dr. J. J. Norton, Dr. L. R. ume and massof the main microcline body so far ex- Page,Dr. J. J. P€ters,Dr. W. E. Wilson, and Mrs' M. Zweibel in ceedcoresponding parametersfor any other crystals the U.S.A. I would also like to thank my former colleague,Mrs. (x 43.5 and x 41.9respectively over the beryl from Ellen Sigmond (University of lceland) for her interest in this was commencedwhile I was attachedto the Nordic Malagasy)that the parametersgiven in Table I must work, which Volcanological Institute, and who has helped me to obtain data be regardedwith scepticism. about some Norwegian specimens.Finally, I offer my thanks to Of the 60 crystalslisted in Table l, 20 are known Mr. Norris D. McWhirter, Editor of the GuinnessBook of Rec- to be in museumcollections (sulphur, stibnite (2), ga- ords, whose appreciation of my first efforts enoouragedmc to lena, argyrodite, corundum, brucite, soda-nitre,ger- make a complete compilation for geologists.Dr. B. J. Hensen the manuscript, and the advice of Profcssor C. schwartzembergite,wulfenite, scheelite(3), kindly criticized hardtite, Frondel resultcdin many improvementsto it. vanadinite, garnet, orthite, muscovite, whewellite (2)),3 (crocoite,legrandite and mimetite) are in pri- vate collectionsand I (kernite) is still in situ. Three References others,kamacite, tennantite, and wulfenite may be in Anderson,O., (1931)Feltspat II. ForekomsterI Fylkene Buskerud museumsbut there is someuncertainty. The ferroan- og Telemark, I Flere Hcrreder I Aust-Agder og I Hidra I Vest- brucite (e,) is likely to be in a museum,probably in Agder. NorgesGeologiske Undersokclse, 128 B' l-109. Anonymous (1889) Canadian Mining Rcview, 8, (ll)' 6. (not the U.S.A. sighted;extract by Dr. D. D. Hogarth-25-l-78). An attempt has beenmade to obtain photographic Anonymous (1890)The Canadian phosphatcindustry' Canadian proof of the data in Table I from museum curators Mining Rcview,9,(ll), 158-160. 906 RI CKWOOD: LARGEST CRYSTALS

Bancroft, P. (1973) Tbe World's fincst minerals and crystals. ogiques mondiales. Burcau de rechcrches g6ologiques et mhi- Thomas and Hudson, London. Cres,Paris. (Pagination rccommenceswith each museum entry). Bandy, M. L. (1951) The Ribauc-Alto Ligonha p€gmatitcdistrict, Guillcmin, C. (1972) En visitant les grandes collections min6ral- PortugueseEast Africa. Rocks and Minerals, 26,512_521. ogiques mondialcs. Burcau de recherchcs g6ologiques ct mini- Bariand, P. and Bariand,N. (1926)Marvellous world of minerals. ies, Paris. Trans. D. Macrae. Abbey Library, London. Hall, R. L. (1920) Corundum in the Northern and Eastern Trans- Barth, T. (1928) Zar Gcncsc peginatitc der im Urgebirgc. l. Die vaal. Union of South Africa, Dcpartment of Mincs and lndus- pegmatite Geologieund Pctrographiedcr granitischen im Siid_ tries, Mcmoir, 15. lichstcn Norwegen. Neues Jahrbuch fur Mineralogie, Geologie Hanlcy, J. B. (1953)Bob Ingersoll Mine (KeystoneDistricr). U.S. und Palaeontologic, 50, 385432. 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