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Earrings handmade jewelry piece unique natural crystals of apatite and Sterling silver.
Weight, 5.3 grams
Size, 2 inches.
The Cerro del Mercado iron mine in Durango is one of the most important and famous localities for fine apatite specimens in the world. Almost every collector has seen and can easily recognize apatite from this well known mine. The fluorapatite at Cerro del Mercado was most abundant in the western ore body; sadly, this ore body is almost exhausted and mining has been inactive there for over 25 years. The apatite from Durango is not only of interest for mineral collectors, but has other uses too. Clear apatite that is chemically very pure has been used in small amounts for many years by the pharmaceutical industry for the production of certain medications. In addition, the Durango apatite has research applications. Some scientists use it as a standard for the thermochronologic analysis of rocks (apatite fission track analysis). These measurements represent an alternative method for the dating of rocks and in some cases, they make it possible to reconstruct the thermal history of rocks in the low temperature environment. REFERENCES Lyons, J. I., 1988, Volcanogenetic Iron Oxide Deposits, Cerro de Mercado and vicinity, Durango, Mexico: Economic Geology, Vol. 83, p. 1886-1906. Megaw, P., 1999, The Geology and Minerals of Cerro de Mercado, Durango, Mexico: Rocks & Minerals, Vol. 74:1, Mineral of Mexico, p. 20-29. Jurgeit, M., 2001, Fluorapatit und seine Begleitmineralien vom Cerro del Mercado in Durango, Mexiko: Mineralienwelt, Vol. 4, p. 56-61.