Deccan Flood Basalts, Maharashtra State, India
The quarries of the Deccan Flood Basalts are among our Top 12 Mineral Localities.
The localities hosted by the Deccan flood basalts in India are the source of the world’s finest zeolite and “zeolite-related” specimens. Specifically, the mesolite, scolecite, stilbite, stellerite, goosecreekite, fluorapophyllite, okenite, gyrolite, cavansite, pentagonite and powellite are easily among the world’s best.
The basalt, from which these magnificent minerals are extracted, formed when lava spewed from cracks in the earth's crust and then spread out over a wide area, cooled and hardened. The cavities in which these crystals grew are actually gas bubbles that formed in the flowing lava as it escaped from the pressures deep within the earth, much like the bubbles that form in a soda pop when the cap is removed. Groundwater carrying dissolved minerals flowed through the porous rock and entered the pockets, precipitating these delicate crystals inside the voids.
The term "pillow" basalts is often used to describe some of the rocks of these flows. This term is used for basalts that erupted under water or flowed into water. In doing so, the lava formed as piles of flattened, lobate masses that look like a stack of pillows. The basalt flows of the Deccan Plateau, cover more than 200,000 square miles and have yielded countless fine quality zeolite specimens. The name "zeolite" refers to a group of silicate minerals characterized by crystallographic structures that form distinct channels at the atomic level. These channel ways have distinct measurements and properties in each zeolite mineral, which allows them to be used as chemical filters. Ironically, although zeolites are common and found worldwide, many of the industrial varieties are grown synthetically by the ton.
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PENTAGONITE
Wagholi, Pune District (Poonah District), Maharashtra, India
$185
18mm x 11mm x 12mm
From: Quebul Fine Minerals
Fluorapophyllite-(K) with Stilbite
Jalgaon Dist., Nashik Div., Maharashtra, India
$7000
80mm x 70mm x 60mm
From: The Arkenstone
Chalcedony on Scolecite from India
Chandanapuri, Maharashtra, India
$325
62mm x 56mm x 34mm
Cavansite with Calcite on Calcite
Wagholi Quarries, Wagholi, Pune Dist., Maharashtra, India
$6500
70mm x 50mm x 20mm
From: The Arkenstone
Fluorapophyllite and Stilbite
Jalgaon, Maharashtra, India
$750
80mm x 70mm x 50mm
From: The Arkenstone
Cavansite
Wagholi Quarries, Wagholi, Pune Dist., Maharashtra, India
$2400
30mm x 20mm x 20mm
From: The Arkenstone
Stellerite (Illustrated)
Ahmadnagar District (Ahmednagar District; Ahmed Nagar District), Maharashtra, India
$17500
170mm x 150mm x 100mm
From: The Arkenstone
Heulandite with Stilbite
Jalgon, Maharashtra State, India
$42
53mm x 42mm x 31mm
From: The Crystal Circle
Stilbite cast after Okenite
Pune, Maharashtra State, India
$750
60mm x 40mm x 20mm
From: The Arkenstone
Stilbite and Apophyllite
Nasik Quarry, Pashan, Pune (Poonah) District, Maharashtra, India
$240
67mm x 60mm x 44mm
From: Bob Griffis Minerals
Heulandite with Stilbite
Jalgon, Maharashtra State, India
$95
80mm x 63mm x 53mm
From: The Crystal Circle
Apophyllite with Chalcedony & Quartz
Ahmadnagar District, Maharashtra, India
$51 *
50mm x 37mm x 26mm
From: Taranis Minerals
Calcite, gyrolite, prehnite
Malad Quarry, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
$250
87mm x 69mm x 62mm
From: Spirifer Minerals
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