Hubnerite with Fluorite (rare locality specimen)

Hubnerite with Fluorite (rare locality specimen)The Himalaya mine in Bolivia lies on the great mountain peak of Cerro Illimani (pronounced ee yee MAHN ee) just outside of the capital city of La Paz. This great mountain is over 16,000 feet tall and gets its name from an Aimara word meaning "golden eagle". The fact that there are mines on this mountain is incredible considering the elevation and treacherous conditions. In July of 2009 there was a new find of Hubnerite from this famous mine. This is

I acquired this piece from my father when I was about 15 years old

and those who are familiar with specimens from this mine know that good quality Vivianites are next to impossible to obtain

Specimen # BOL711B30

Great quality all around

one of the best Sphalerites that I know of from this tungsten mine in northern Bolivia

so they are easily distinguishable from the Topaz

and it resided in his collection until he passed in 2025

This piece is from the type locality for this material which was discovered along the Contacto and San Jose veins in this mine and was first described by Sam Gordon and Mark Bandy

The specimen is nearly 100% complete

For the size and quality

and a bit of character

Keep in mind that there are no other localities producing Magnetites of this quality today