earthstory: Galena on quartz. This grey sulphide is the most…
Galena on quartz.
This grey sulphide is the most common source of lead, usually found as plain grey veins or lumps. Sometimes though, a lovely museum grade specimen emerges from the Earth to delight our eyes. It often contains viable amounts of silver, and the Romans used to mine it in Wales and Spain in order to smelt the precious white metal out. The name was first used by Pliny the Elder, the famous Roman naturalist who died in the great eruption of Vesuvio that destroyed Pompeii and Herculaneum. It was used over 3000 years ago in ancient Egypt as makeup, the kohl one sees around the eyes in ancient paintings.