Straw-like Carbonate of Lead

Carbonate of Lead in spiculæ is found in some parts of Cornwall, Devonshire, Somersetshire, the county of Durham and other places where Lead ores are found, but the richest specimens are found at Wanlockhead in Scotland. The present specimen is an extremely irregular bundle of fibrous crystals, many of them nearly tubular, curiously formed among ochre which gives it an odd appearance. The spiculæ are chiefly formed into irregular columns, something like short pieces of straw. It is upon an Argillaceous Iron Stone with thin veins of Quartz.

Mr. Laing, from whom we had this, has a specimen with similar crystals seven inches in length, five in breadth, and four in thickness. The crystals are in similar groups, but cemented by amorphous Carbonate of Lead. The entire specimen is of a pure silky white colour. Large as this specimen is, the crystals are not greater than in the one figured.