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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CAVANSITE
Wagholi, Pune District (Poonah District), Maharashtra, India
$35
13mm x 11mm x 11mm
From: Quebul Fine Minerals
Apophyllite with Scolecite
Jalisgoan, near Jalgoan, Maharashtra State, India
$225
50mm x 40mm x 33mm
From: The Crystal Circle
Calcite with Fluorapophyllite-K
Pune, Maharashtra, India
$90
50mm x 35mm x 15mm
From: Weinrich Minerals
Stilbite on Quartz over Calcite
Jalgaon, Maharashtra State, India
$500
105mm x 40mm x 20mm
From: Marin Minerals
Powellite
Pandulena Hill, Nashik, Maharashtra, India
$455
35mm x 35mm x 30mm
From: Weinrich Minerals
Fluorapophyllite and Stilbite (Floater)
Jalgaon, Maharashtra, India
$750
30mm x 10mm x 10mm
From: The Arkenstone
Powellite (Fluorescent) and Apophyllite on Scolecite
near Nasik, Maharashtra, India
$4500
60mm x 20mm x 10mm
From: The Arkenstone
Pentagonite
Wagholi Quarry, near Poona, Maharashtra, India
$1800
40mm x 20mm x 10mm
From: The Arkenstone
Cavansite with Stilbite
Pune District, Maharashtra, India
$75
50mm x 39mm x 35mm
From: Bob Griffis Minerals
Yugawaralite on Quartz
Malad Quarry, Malad, Mumbai Suburban dist., Maharashtra, India
$2750
70mm x 50mm x 30mm
From: The Arkenstone
Chalcedony on Scolecite from India
Chandanapuri, Maharashtra, India
$325
62mm x 56mm x 34mm
Apophyllite and Stilbite
Lonavala Quarry, Pune (Poonah) District, Lonavala, Maharashtra, India
$475
158mm x 126mm x 75mm
From: Bob Griffis Minerals
