New Mexico Mineral Symposium — Abstracts

This presentation is a comparison of one of the rarer minerals, scheelite, found at the Cunningham Hill mine in the old Placers mining district and the Copper Belle mine in the New Placers mining district. The Cunningham Hill mine is a part of the Ortiz mine area, and the Copper Belle is part of the San Pedro mine area.

The objectives of this study were to compare the geochemical make up of the scheelite crystals being found at both sites and to get a better understanding of the sequence of mineral formation from the minerals closely associated with the_ scheelite. A series of SEM (scanning electron microprobe) tests were run on fragments of scheelite for the geochemical comparison, and field collecting of minerals in association with the scheelite was also done. Photographs were made of all quality specimens for review and record purposes. Information from the fieldwork, SEM data, and the mineral associations was then used to determine a paragenetic sequence model for both scheelite localities.

Symposium attendees will enjoy the pictures and find the presentation informative. In particular, the pictures of the Copper Belle mine specimens may give evidence of the best scheelite and amethyst quartz scepters to be found in the state to this date.