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MINES
AND OTHER FLUORITE SITES
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CHAILLAC
(Chaillac, Indre)
The "Rossignol" mine (Nightingale mine) is located
in Chaillac (Indre), at 30 km to SW of Argenton-sur-Creuse.
Currently, the recognized length of its vein is 1000 m. Its
recognized depth is 250m. The fluorite is violet, with sulphide
inclusion. The "Societe Industrielle du Centre" (Industrial
Company of the Center -SIC-) has just closed the mine.
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LE
KAYMAR
(Pruines, St Cyprien s/Dourdou, Aveyron)
Since Antiquity, the seams of Kaymard have been exploited for
silver, lead... It is only at the XX century that the fluorite
became industrially interesting. The morphology and the paragenesis
of this mine present many common points with the Valzergues mine
of fluorite. Currently, the site is put in safety.
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LANGEAC
(Langeac, Haute Loire)
Langeac (Haute-Loire) is the name of a mine belonging to the
French mining posterity. Due to its important veins which has
been abandoned in 1977 and which has provided one of the largest
productions of fluorite in France, Marsanges, Barlet and Dreyt
were the most known sites. In "Haute-Loire", with
the district of Chavagnac-Lafayette ( located at 10 km to NE
of Langeac), the district of Langeac focused an important extractive
activity for the country. The crystallisations are also famous.
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MAXONCHAMP
(Maxonchamp, Vosges)
The Vein of Maxonchamp is located in the "Massif des Vosges"
. It has a recognized length of 600 m , and a recognized height
of 200 m (approximately). Discovered in 1933 and recognized about
1954, this mine was exploited in 1959 by the mining company of
the "Haut du Them" .
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LA
BARRE
(Pontgibaud, St Jacques d'Ambur, Puy de Dôme)
The mine of "La Barre" is located at forty kilometers
to the N-W of Clermont-Ferrand. Mineralisation appears as an
hydrothermal vein recognized on approximately 1 km. It was exploited
on a height of 350m. In 1966, the SECME (see "The Valzergues
mine of fluorite") was interested in it. The sector is
known to have delivered octahedral minerals (edges of 6 cm).
Currently, all the galleries are not accessible... to human
(put in safety in 2000)... That doesn't concern bats!
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LE
BURG
(Alban, Tarn)
This mine is located in Paulinet (Tarn), at 6 km of South Westerm
Alban. Montroc mine and Moulinal mine are close to this mine.
The vein has been recognized on 900 m of length and on 235 m of
height. The fluorite of Burc is very pure. It is known for its
beautiful blue crystallizations. SOGEREM (a subsidiary of
Pechiney group) has exploited fluorite since 1953.
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FONTSANTE
(Var)
The mine of Fontsante (Var) is located in the south of the "
Massif du Tanneron" (Esterel).
It contains 20 parallel veins, from East to West. The major
veins cover 2500 m, from South to North and 800 m, from West
to East. The largest recognized depth is around 260 m. SECME
(See "the Valzergues mine of fluorite") did important
works which yield beautiful fluorite crystals and remarkable
acanthites.
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FOISCHES
(Bois le Duc, Ardennes)
Located in Givet (Ardennes), this fluorite mine has not been continuously
exploited during more than one century. A common point with the
Valzergues mine of fluorite is an irregular exploitation. Consequently,
this mine wasn't recognized as important. The minéralogical
specimens found in this mine are fluorite crystals with a particular
shape (not common).
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MONTROC
(Montroc, Tarn)
The fluorite vein of Montroc is 10 km SW of Alban, in the fluorited
district of Moulinal and Burc. The vein is exploited in open
pit by SOGEREM (subsidiary of the Pechiney group). With the
open pit of the closer mine, i.e. the mine of Moulinal, the
stripping works carried out reach 26 millions cubic meters.
The remediation of the open pit is carried out in parallel with
the exploitation.
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LE
MOULINAL
(St Jean de Jeannes, Tarn)
The fluorite seam of Moulinal is close to Paulinet and Reyssac
villages (Tarn), at 8 km to the South of Alban. Its exploitation
by SOGEREM in open pits since 1984.
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ESCARO-SAHORRE
(Sahorre, Pyrénées Orientales)
The mine of Escaro is close to Vernet-les-Bains village, in
the "Pyrénées-Orientales". With its
neighbour, the mine of Sahorre (located in the village of Sahorre),
in the district of Canigou in which it is the floret,
it was the first French producing area for the fluorite. The
mine closed in 1991 and the factory stopped in 1993.
Escaro was exploited by Denain Anzin Minerals, in the open pit
known as Escaro-Pla de Gante. Sahorre was also exploited in
open pit by the same company. The ore of the two mines was enriched
in the Olette flotation plant which belonged to the SECME (
see "The Valzergues Mine of Fluorite").
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LA
PIERRE PERTHUIS
Among the French spah fluor reserves, the stratiform mines of
Morvan have been recently discovered . They are the most important
in tonnage and extent. Perhaps, except for Marigny formely, we
should not hope to find very beautiful geodes in these stratiform
ore deposits... unless an exception which Net Surfers will be
sympathic to inform us of. The various fluorited mines are:
Pierre Perthuis (Yonne)
Pontaubert (Yonne)
Marigny-sur-Yonne (Nièvre)
Egreuil (Nièvre)
Courcelles-Frémoy (Côte-d'Or)
Antully (Saône-et-Loire)
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PADIES
(Tarn, France)
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EL HAMMAM
NIZEROLLES
PIC MARTIN
LE BEIX
LE POURTALET
COMBRONDE
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LE
PUY SAINT-GULMIER
LE MAINE
L'AVELLAN
LE GRAND-CHATELARD
L'ARGENTOLLE
VOLTENNE
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SOME
OTHER MINES...
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TREPCA
(Kosovo)
The
Trepca mine has yielded to museums and to collectors of all
the world exceptional specimen of various minerals, particularly
vivianite, ludlamite, jamesonite, pyrrhotite, arsenopyrite,
dolomite et more commonly very beautiful sphalerites (marmatite).
Altogether more than 60 minerals are thus listed. It is a giant
weighing 60 millions tons ore containing 5 millions tons lead
and zinc metal. Despite no fluorite has been identified there
yet, the sad fate which has fallen on this famous deposit since
1990 and since the Kosovo war fully justifies one page of the
website be devoted to it. To crown it all, in 1999, the mineralogical
museum of the mine was plundered. Fortunately, good hopes for
a resumption of the mine are now permitted.
Full
text by Jean Feraud
In
the "private section" of this site, all the texts
are developed as the one just above...
...so, welcome!
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