There are only few minerals that are compounds with gold in their structure. All are rare, though Calaverite is one of the best known. Calaverite is named after Calaveras County, California, where it was first described.
Crystal Forms & Aggregates
In bladed or elongated crystals, and in short tabular crystals. Crystals are almost always striated lengthwise, and are usually small and in parallel or platy groupings. Also grainy, massive, and as coatings and crusts.
Striking Features
Crystal habits, striations, and mode of occurrence.
Environment
Low temperature hydrothermal replacement deposits.
Calaverite is an ore of gold. It is also rare collector's mineral, with special value due to its gold content.
Noteworthy Localities
The bulk of collector's specimens of Calaverite are from several of the mines in the Cripple Creek District, Teller Co., Colorado, including the Ajax/Cresson, Doctor, El Paso, Mary McKinney, Molly Kathleen, Portland, and Vindicator Mines. In California, tiny samples of Calaverite have come from the type locality at Carson Hill, Calaveras Co., California, in the Melones and Stanislaus Mines. In Kalgoorlie, Western Australia, Calaverite is actively mined with Gold as an ore of gold.
