Vote for your favorite mineral in #MinCup26! - Sphalerite vs. Anorthite Both zinc ore Sphalerite and calcium plagioclase feldspar Anorthite have perfect cleavage that will split cleanly if you hit them with a hammer, but only one can claim a larger split of your votes!
"Pyrrhotite and loellingite constitute the bulk of the ore minerals [at Shepard's Lode]..."Pyrrhotite, locally altered to pyrite, is the only other sulfide present in abundance [in the gold-bearing lodes]. Native gold, generally as micron sized grains, is found, along with pyrite and chalcopyrite, in a network of thin fractures and veins cutting the arsenopyrite." Gray (2005)
Habit:
grains
Quality for species:
Poor for species, only of interest for locality collectors. (#)