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

5412 Aquamarine, Goethite Pseudomorph after Siderite, Biotite

Erongo Mountain, Erongo Region, Namibia
4.6 x 4.4 x 2.8 cm
$85

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
5460 Chrysocolla Pseudomoprh after Selenite Ray Mine, Scott Mountain area, Mineral Creek Dist., Dripping Spring Mts, Pinal Co., Arizona from 1976 find, Ex. Flying Pan Minerals, Ex. Storm Mountain Minerals, Ex. Paul Cowan 2.9 x 2.7 x 1.5 cm $75	5183 Clinoptilolite, Quartz Pseudomorph after Anhydrite, Scepter Quartz, Calcite, Celandonite Planalto, Alto Uruguai region, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil Ex. Steve Pullman purchased from Luiz Menezes in 1990 at Tucson 6.1 x 3.7 x 2.6 cm $75	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
3371 Chamosite Pseudomorph after Almandine Spurr Mountain Mine, Imperial Heights, Baraga Co., Michigan 5.2 x 4.7 x 4.8 cm $35	2243 Crinoid Stems Bloomington,Monroe Co., Inidiana, USA Priror to 1975 9.4 x 3.5 x 4.2 cm $35

D

6313 Dinosaur Bone, Lapidary Quality Jurassic, Morrisson Formation, Utah UV Fluorescent 5 x 4.4 x 0.5 cm $25	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

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

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 $250
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

6420 Pyrite Pseudomorph after Calcite Contessa Mine, Santa Eulalia District, Mun. de Serdan, Chihuahua, Mexico Ex. E. Morales from Roberts Minerals, 1982, Ex. Arizona-Sonora Museum 7 x 6.1 x 4.8 cm $150	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
4760 Pyromorphite on Quartz with Casts after Barite Williams Corners, Wheatley Mines, Phoenixville Mining dist., Schuylkill Twp., Chester Co., Pennsylvania 9.8 x 6.2 x 5.2 cm $75	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	5903 Double Terminated Smoky Quartz, Quartz Pseudomorph after Aegirine Mont Saint-Hilaire, Quebec, Canada 3.3 x 2.2 x 2 cm $55
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

S

6244 Siderite Pseudomorph after Calcite Santa Eulalia District, Mun. de Aquiles Serdan, Chihuahua, Mexico Ex. E. Morales, purchased at Tucson Show, 1983 9.5 x 7.1 x 4.6 cm $75	5395 Smithsonite Pseudomorh after Dolomite Monte Cristo Mine, Rush, Rush Creek District, Marion Co., Arkansas 5.4 x 5 x 1.4 cm $50	4408 Smoky Quartz with Included Hematite, Goethite Pseudomorphs after Siderite, Microcline Teller Co., Colorado 15.8 x 6.6 x 4.6 cm $85
4356 Sphalerite variety Ruby Jack, Calcite casts Cleator Moor Iron Mines, Cleator Moor, West Cumberland Iron Field, Cumbria, England Ex. H. R. McBroom, from Sam Weller, 1985 6.4 x 5.2 x 4.1 cm $100

T

6292 Goethite variety: Turgite Pseudomorph after Kyanite Graves Mountain, Lincoln Co., Georgia 6.9 x 3.8 x 3.1 cm $35	6206 Polished Tampa Bay Fossilized Coral Tampa Bay, Florida Ex. Robert Gannon 13.1 x 4.8 x 1.9 and 12.2 x 4.8 x 2.2 $50	5000 Tennantite pseudomorph after Enargite with Malachite Tsumeb, Namibia 4.8 x 3.5 x 1.9 cm $120
1149 Tourmaline with inner core replaced with Quartz Urubu mine, Monte Belo, Itinga, Jequitinhonha valley, Minas Gerais, Brazil 5 x 2.1 x 1.8 cm $175