Wulfenite from Los Lamentos, Mexico – Thick-Tabular Crystals on Matrix

This Wulfenite specimen from Los Lamentos in Chihuahua, Mexico, shows numerous brownish-orange to caramel-brown Wulfenite crystals on a dark brown matrix. Particularly characteristic is their thick-tabular to strongly squat habit, which gives some of the crystals an almost blocky appearance.

Measuring 5.7 × 4.5 × 4.0 cm and weighing 149.2 g, this is a small cabinet specimen. The Wulfenite crystals cover large areas of one side of the matrix and occur both individually and in densely intergrown groups.

Thick-tabular to squat Wulfenite crystals

The crystals predominantly show a brownish-orange to caramel-brown color. Some areas appear slightly more yellowish, especially along thinner edges and on more strongly illuminated crystal faces.

Particularly striking is the unusually robust, thick-tabular habit. Many crystals are only slightly elongated and therefore appear strongly squat to locally almost blocky. Several of the larger crystals show clearly recognizable flat faces and angular outlines.

The crystal surfaces show a noticeable luster, although some are irregularly developed or partly covered by fine surface coatings. Together, the densely distributed crystals form a compact crystallization on the brown matrix.

Wulfenite from Los Lamentos in Chihuahua

Los Lamentos in Chihuahua, Mexico, is one of the classic localities for Wulfenite. The locality is especially known for robust, often orange to brown Wulfenite crystals that are frequently much thicker and more squat than material from many other localities.

This specimen displays that characteristic Los Lamentos habit very clearly. The main appeal lies less in exceptional transparency or intense orange coloration than in the numerous squat crystals and the characteristic locality appearance.