The London Lead Company had an early interest.
From the London lead Co Minutes Books at the Newcastle Mining Institute
Libruary.
LLC 6/ Page 259. 1731 Jan 5th. Lease from Earl of Moreton, minerals in
Orkney & Shetland from 7 Jul 1709, 21 years
Regards
Ian
In a message dated 31/07/2011 08:17:43 GMT Daylight Time,
[log in to unmask] writes:
Just a quick geological interlude! Difficult to compare this deposit to
e.g. Gairloch because Sandlodge (so far as I am aware, and I've read odds &
ends about it over the years) is an epigenetic vein deposit with quartz,
carbonates, chalcopyrite, tetrahedrite and hematite - whether the latter is
primary or secondary I don't know, but the oxidation-zone appears to have
been well-developed as the site was famous for its malachite, which earned it
a mention in Greg & Lettsom's Manual of the Mineralogy of Great Britain and
Ireland (1858). They say: "In very fine acicular crystals, almost equal to
the Siberian specimens, at the old copper-mine, Sandlodge". Praise indeed!
They also report native copper from there.
Regards - John
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