Stibnite

Stibnite from Hillgrove / Stanton Co., New South Wales, Australia, measuring 68 × 14 × 13 mm and weighing 24 grams. The specimen shows a slender, metallic-looking piece with strong lengthwise lines. Its narrow form gives it a clear visual identity, drawing attention to the way the specimen extends along one principal direction rather than forming a broad cluster.

Stibnite is antimony sulphide and an important antimony ore mineral. It is associated with mineral-bearing fluids moving through veins and other openings in rock. For a collector, that chemistry gives the species an interest beyond its metallic appearance: it represents a metal that is less familiar in a cabinet than copper, iron or lead, yet has its own distinctive mineralogy.

The specimen's 68 mm length contrasts with its much smaller width and depth. Those proportions are worth keeping in mind when arranging it in a display, allowing its elongated character to remain the focus. The locality attribution is Hillgrove / Stanton Co.; the particular shape and dimensions give this individual piece its place within that recorded occurrence. This example comes from the Anne McDonald Collection. The collection history accompanies a specimen whose appeal is easy to understand at a glance, but which also rewards a mineralogical reading. A compact sulphide group can gain considerable variety from Stibnite, bringing a different ore metal, a pronounced elongated form and a named collection connection into the same display.