Pseudomorphs and Casts Minerals Gallery M&W Minerals

Pseudomorphs and Casts Gallery

On this gallery, are gathered all the specimens on this website which are considered pseudomorphs. A pseudomorph is a mineral or mineral compound which is in an atypical form, which has resulted from a substitution process in which the appearance and dimensions of one mineral have been retained, but the original mineral is replaced by another. The name literally means "false form". There are essentially 3 kinds of pseudmorphs which are the following:

Substitution Pseudomorphs: In these specimens, one mineral has been completely chemically substituted by another mineral. The shape of the original mineral is retained, but color, hardness, and density are usually different (and often luster).

Alteration Pseudomorphs: In these specimens, only a partial substitution has occurred. This leads to a specimen with a layer of the new mineral with an interior of the original mineral with the shape of the original mineral.

Perimorphs: In these specimens, one mineral has been coated by another and the original has dissolved. This usually leads to a specimen with a mix of surfaces both of the new mineral and the surfaces of the dissolved mineral. A gray area is where this

dissolution is not natural. A case in point, Michigan Copper specimens are often found as casts after Calcite. In some cases, the dissolution has occurred due to acidic natural solutions but in other cases the Calcite has been purposely etched out with acid. Sometimes it is difficult to differentiate between the two.

Casts: In these specimens, a mineral has formed but it's shape has been determined by the environment in which it formed. Two examples are geodes and Michigan Copper Skulls and Amygdules.

minerals in alphabetical order by first letter only
(this is the primary mineral of the specimen - the pseudomorph may be a secondary mineral)

click on the title link or photo to proceed to a specimen's page

A

6575 Azurite Psuedomorphing to Malachite with Aragonite

Tsumeb, Namibia
Ex. Norm Woods
11.8 x 9.8 x 8.1 cm
$150

6535 Amazonite, Smoky Quartz, Albite with Casts

Crystal Peak area, Park or Teller Co., Colorado
Ex. Chicago Field Museum from Wards Scientific
23 x 18.2 x 10.2 cm
$750

B

4604 Calcite pseudomorph after Glauberite

Camp Verde, Camp Verde District, Yavapai Co., Arizona
9 x 6.7 x 7.1 cm
$45

C

6200 Calcite Crystals with Small Casts Santa Eulalia District, Mun. de Aquiles Serdan, Chihuahua, Mexico 1970s 14.1 x 12.2 x 7.1 cm $50	5906 Marcasite Included and on the Surface of Calcite Crystals, Small Casts after Unkown Crystals Dornburg Mine, Ramsbeck, Meschede, Sauerland, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany Ex. Renaud Vochten, purchased in 1970 10.6 x 7.2 x 2.6 cm $55	5878 Chalcocite Crystals on Massive Chaclcocite with Cast Wheal Pendarves, Killivose, Camborne, Cornwall, England 4.4 x 3.7 x 3.3 cm $100
4994 Calcite with Unidentified Pink Alteration, Chalcopyrite Sweetwater Mine, Viburnum Trend Dist., Reynolds Co., Missouri 4.2 x 1.9 x 1.5 cm $40	2243 Crinoid Stems Bloomington,Monroe Co., Inidiana, USA Priror to 1975 9.4 x 3.5 x 4.2 cm $35

D

6108 Dolomite Pseudomorph/Epimorph after Calcite

Guanajuato, Guanajuato, Mexico
1960s
9.5 x 5.8 x 3.5 cm
The Dolomite is approximately 2 mm thick.
$70

6021 Datolite Crystals and Smoky Quartz with Pseudomorphic Casts after Calcite

Bor Pit (Boron Pit), Dal'negorsk B deposit, Dal'negorsk, Primorskiy Kray, Far-Eastern Region, Russia
12.2 x 7.5 x 4.7 cm
$200

5853 Datolite and Quartz with Casts after Calcite

Bor Pit (Boron Pit), Dal'negorsk B deposit, Dal'negorsk, Primorskiy Kray, Far-Eastern Region, Russia
10.8 x 8.5 x 4.3 cm
$600

F

6545 Fluorite on Quartz with Pseudomorphic Casts after Fluorite

Frazer's Hush Mine, Rookhope, Stanhope, County Durham, England
UV Fluorescent
12 x 11.2 x 5.3 cm
$250

6435 Multicolored Fluorite with Included Chalcopyrite, Casts after Barite

Hardin Co., Illinois
Ex. A. Neely, Wrapped in Hardin County Independent newspapers from 1963
19.3 x 13.5 x 6 cm
$200

5467 Fluorite on and within Quartz Pseudomorphs after Calcite Coated with Montromite

Prospectors Delight Mine (Black Knife Mine), Cuchillo Negro Dist., Sierra Cuchillo, Sierra Co., New Mexico
Ex. Wright's Rock Shop
10.8 x 7.2 x 6.5 cm
$100

G

6475 Goethite Pseudomorph after Octahedral Pyrite

North Salinas Valley, Inyo Co., California
Ex. E. Morales from J. Minette, 1983
6.9 x 4.4 x 3.3 cm
$75

4575 Iridescent Baculites

Pierre Shale, Cretacous Period, South Dakota
Ex. Vivian Randall
5.8 x 3.4 x 1.3 cm
$25

H

6670 Hydroxylapatite Psuedomorphs (labeled as Wilkeite), Unidentified Black Material

Mina Astillero, Sierra el Rosario, Municipio de Mapimi, Durango, Mexico
UV Fluorescent
Ex. Norm Woods
9.8 x 8.2 x 7.1 cm
$100

6659 Hematite Pseudomorph after Magnetite (Martite)

Payun Martu, Altiplano de Payun Matru, Malargue Dept., Mendoza Prov., Argentina
Ex. Norm Woods
6.5 x 6 x 4 cm
$60

L

5330 Limonite Pseudomorph after Marcasite and Spahlerite with Dolomite and Calcite

Fairdale Quarry (I-39 Quarry), Rochelle, Ogle Co., Illinois
5.1 x 5.2 x 4.9 cm
Largest crystal measures 1.2 cm across.
$45

M

6521 Marcasite Cast after Calcite, Galena coated with Lead and Iron Oxides

Joplin Field, Tri-State District, Jasper Co., Missouri
9.3 x 9 x 5.9 cm
$50

6374 Chrysocolla Pseudomoprh after Malachite, Micro Crystals of Dioptase

Bonanza Mine (Harquahala Mine), Martin Peak, Salome, Little Harquahala Dist., Little Harquahala Mts, La Paz Co., Arizona
Ex. Steve Pullman, Ex. Fraziers
9.9 x 7 x 5.6 cm
labeled as Bisbeeite
$45

5920 Malachite and Malachite Pseudomorh after Azurite

Bisbee, Warren District, Mule Mts, Cochise Co., Arizona
4.8 x 3.8 x 3.9 cm
$35

5027 Malachite on Quartz with Casts after Calcite, Minor Chalcopyrite

Mina El Cobre, Zacatecas, Mexico
Ex. Robert Gannon
7.8 x 6.3 x 4.2 cm
$45

4629 Malachite Pseudomorph after Azurite

Tsumeb, Namibia
5.2 x 2.8 x 1.6 cm
$150

2887 Malachite Pseudomorph after Azurite

Tsumeb, Namibia
3.8 x 2.9 x 2.6 cm
SOLD

2062 Mimetite on Goethite pseudomorphs after Calcite

Megala Pefka Mine No. 28, Lavrion (Laurion; Laurium) District, Attiki (Attica) Prefecture, Greece
Ex. Steve Pullman
6.2 x 6 x 1.5 cm
$50

P

6681 Prehnite Pseudomorphs after Anhydrite, Stilbite, Calcite Paterson, Passaic Co., New Jersey Ex. E. Morales from ALW Collections, 1996 4.8 x 4 x 3.6 cm $30	6637 Mimetite on Plumbogummite Partially Pseudomorph after Pyromorphite Dry Gill Mine, Caldbeck Fells, Allerdale, Cumbria, England PbAl₃(PO₄)(PO₃OH)(OH)₆ Ex. J. George Wilson 4.4 x 3 x 2.9 cm SOLD	5087 Plumbogummite Pseduomorph after Pyromorphite Yangshuo Mine, Yangshuo Co., Guilin Pref., Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, China UV Fluorescent PbAl₃(PO₄)(PO₃OH)(OH)₆ 6.5 x 4.3 x 3.4 cm $150
5044 Pyromorphite Pseudomorph after Cerussute Higher Roughton Gill (Balliway Rigg), Roughton Gill, Caldbeck Fells, Cumbria, England 5.6 x 4.3 x 3.8 cm $150	4104 Polished Petrified Wood (Chalcedony / Quartz) Blue Forest, Eden Valley, Sweetwater Co., Wyoming Pre 1975 10.4 x 7.3 x 1.1 cm $25	1663 Petrified Wood Montana 10.5 x 8.4 x 3.8 cm $15
338 Pyrite pseudomorph after Pyrrhotite Zacatecas, Mexico 8 x 5.7 x 4 cm $50

Q

6481 Quartz Pseudomorph after Aragonite Rancho Coyamito, Sierra del Gallego, Ahumada Municipality, Chihuahua, Mexico Ex. E. Morales from Mineral and Fossil Gallery, Munich Show, 1983 4.9 x 5.4 x 4.1 cm $75	6353 Quartz Pseuodomorph after Anhydrite Danialo Mine, Sao Gabriel, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil Ex. E. Morales, purchased from Aurora Minerals, New York Show, Nov. 1981 6.1 x 3.8 x 3.3 cm $75	6105 Quartz Pseudomorph/Epimorph after Hemimorphite Mapimi, Durango, Mexico 1970s 12.6 x 9.6 x 4.7 cm $100
5977 Hematite Pseudomorph after Epidote with Quartz Bessemer Claim, Bessemer Ridge, Green Mountain, North Bend, King Co., Washington Ex. Steve Pullman, Ex. David Shannon 6.8 x 3.8 x 2 cm $50	5915 Quartz Epimorph after Fluorite Silverton, San Juan Co., Colorado from Rock & Minerals Denver Auction, Ex. George Witters 11.1 x 6.8 x 4.2 cm $100	5490 Smoky Quartz Pseudomorph Bor Pit (Boron Pit), Dal'negorsk B deposit, Dal'negorsk, Primorskiy Kray, Far-Eastern Region, Russia 7.8 x 4 x 2.8 cm $150
5263 Smoky Quartz, Hematite, Copper Stained Chalcedony with Pseudomophs and Casts Mexico (likely Concepcio del Oro, Zacatecas, Mexico) Ex. Robert Gannon 6.5 x 5.8 x 6.4 cm Uprght crystal measures 4.5 cm tall. $75	5064 Quartz and Hematite Pseudomorph after Epidote Bessemer Claim, Bessemer Ridge, Green Mountain, North Bend, King Co., Washington Ex. Steve Pullman 7.7 x 3.8 x 2.2 cm $50	3111 Quartz Pseudomorph after Poker Chip Calcite Guanajuato, Mexico 14 x 12.6 x 7.3 cm $75