Cuprite

This specimen features sharp, highly lustrous, silvery-bright, deep wine-red cuprite crystals filling vugs and covering much of the massive cuprite matrix. The largest octahedron measures 4 mm, making it a very good representation of a rare find from the Sepon Gold and Copper Operation in the Vilabouly district of Savannakhet province, Laos. These crystals were recovered from a single copper-rich boulder around 2005. Only a handfull of specimens made it out of the mine making these pieces exceptionally rare. To date, no additional specimens have been found, and collecting at the site is now strictly prohibited.

The Sepon Gold and Copper Operation was discovered in 1998 with gold production beginning in 2002 followed by a series of mergers. While gold production initially thrived, reserves were eventually depleted, leading to the cessation of oxide gold operations in 2013. Copper production, which began in 2003 from the Khanong open pit, continued until 2020, when operations shifted back to gold processing.