My OperaMalachite, Congo, and the Copperbelt
Monday, March 15, 2010 3:40:30 PM
Later this year (on 30 June 2010) the Democratic Republic of the Congo will celebrate its 50 years of independence. The DR Congo, previously known as Zaire, is immensely rich in natural resources and is thought to be, by all accounts, the wealthiest country on earth in regards to natural resources. The country is potentially rich but partially ruined. It is a long story of power, money and natural resources - i.e. abused power, money into the “wrong pockets”, and income from mining of natural resources spent on warfare.
Reasons enough to show you one of my treasures from Katanga, Congo - a hand specimen of malachite.
Malachite is a copper carbonate found in oxidised zones of copper deposits. Limestone, or dolomite, around the copper deposits will be the source of the carbonate. A large belt of copper deposits - actually called the “copperbelt” - is stretching from Katanga into Zambia. The Copperbelt is one of the richest sources of copper in the world. Cobalt, selenium, silver, and gold are also produced in this belt. The Central African Copperbelt is one of the world's greatest metallogenic provinces containing 34% of the world's cobalt reserves and over 10% of the world's copper reserves.
Most metal ore deposits can in one way or another be related to plate tectonics. In terms of global resources of copper the most important are porphyry copper deposits found in relation to subduction zones. Second in importance are rift related deposits or rift related stratiform deposits, such as the Copperbelt copper deposits. Such deposits tend to contain ore grades that are distinctly higher than typical porphyry copper deposits (as those in the Andes). The copperbelt deposits occurred within the first marine transgressive unit (of shale and sandstone) laid down after a period of redbed sedimentation.
On 11 July 1960 Katanga separated itself from the newly independent Democratic Republic of the Congo. The state was however reunited with DR Congo in 1963. In 1971 Katanga was renamed Shaba, (very appropriately) from the Swahili word for 'brass' (a borrowing from Arabic shabah). Throughout the 1970s a number of insurrections were put down, and he province became Katanga again in 1997.
Congo Provinces:
[congo_provinces_named_png. centre]
Reasons enough to show you one of my treasures from Katanga, Congo - a hand specimen of malachite.
Malachite is a copper carbonate found in oxidised zones of copper deposits. Limestone, or dolomite, around the copper deposits will be the source of the carbonate. A large belt of copper deposits - actually called the “copperbelt” - is stretching from Katanga into Zambia. The Copperbelt is one of the richest sources of copper in the world. Cobalt, selenium, silver, and gold are also produced in this belt. The Central African Copperbelt is one of the world's greatest metallogenic provinces containing 34% of the world's cobalt reserves and over 10% of the world's copper reserves.
Most metal ore deposits can in one way or another be related to plate tectonics. In terms of global resources of copper the most important are porphyry copper deposits found in relation to subduction zones. Second in importance are rift related deposits or rift related stratiform deposits, such as the Copperbelt copper deposits. Such deposits tend to contain ore grades that are distinctly higher than typical porphyry copper deposits (as those in the Andes). The copperbelt deposits occurred within the first marine transgressive unit (of shale and sandstone) laid down after a period of redbed sedimentation.
On 11 July 1960 Katanga separated itself from the newly independent Democratic Republic of the Congo. The state was however reunited with DR Congo in 1963. In 1971 Katanga was renamed Shaba, (very appropriately) from the Swahili word for 'brass' (a borrowing from Arabic shabah). Throughout the 1970s a number of insurrections were put down, and he province became Katanga again in 1997.
Congo Provinces:
[congo_provinces_named_png. centre] 
You must be 
53north # Tuesday, March 16, 2010 10:08:53 PM
Ole Nielsennielsol # Wednesday, March 17, 2010 10:10:24 AM
The ”Wikipedian” story is that "orichalcum" derives from the Greek ορείχαλκος, oreichalkos (from όρος, oros, mountain and χαλκός, chalkos, copper or bronze), meaning "mountain copper" or "mountain metal". The Romans transliterated "orichalcum" as "aurichalcum", which was thought to literally mean "gold copper".
In later years, "orichalcum" was used to describe the sulfide mineral chalcopyrite or brass.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orichalcum