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It seems almost unreal that these cubes have not been machined, cut, or polished… Believe it or not, they are natural pyrite crystals that formed within the earth! They’re found about 3 hours northeast of Madrid in Navajún, La Rioja, Spain. The pyrite crystals from this mine have a beautiful metallic luster, sharp cubic angles, and can be found inter-grown in clusters or as single cubic structures! Super cool!
If you think these are neat, you can see the individual details of each of the crystals shown in this video and a couple other sources of pyrite on the website: https://www.mineralmike.com/collections/pyrite
Not only can they form in single cubes, but very interesting inter-grown crystal clusters, too. This is an impressive and large example of the clusters found. Many times they do come apart during the mining process, so they are reconstructed and stabilized, which is common with this locality.
Pyrite Crystal from Spain (MineralMike.com)
Really unique pieces that look like works of art.
They even find some specimens that are more rectangular! These are not as common.
Default87
those must have been pretty big wombats.
cuttysark
very cool
thetinymonarch
How perfect are the right angles? Could you use them as a gage for tools?
Twinklepot
Amazing!
Righteousdew
Is that enough to make a parrot?
roberMarbleWatcher
I've also heard that there is a place in France,...
MuaddibISR
Borg stones
Zetor
Pyrite, amirite?
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nclu
Bethesda: ship it!
MyOtherPetIsACat
MeshHatMafia
This reminds me of that recent video that was posted of those two people cumming every time they pulled a cube of pyrite out of the face of the sediment
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Eniff
Some idiot: Nature abhors right angles.
Iron pyrite: Hold my beer.
Black0rchids
That first specimen tho! Wow
MoreGems
It is pretty sweet. I think that one weighs like 4 kilos
StrawberriesandSunshine
And all I can think about was that ____ coworker of mine that insisted "squares don't naturally exist in nature".
zeacorzeppelin10
Neat.
Whoevertore
Pi-rite? More like squared-rite.
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hetnkik999
Need myself a few trillion so I can make the last dungeon in a JRPG out of 'em.
TripleDane
Looks like Bethesda tried to make a Tetris game
Energyvibes
Gorgeous! Pyrite is almost alienlike, nature is awesome!
TheFakeCraigFerguson
You saying that made me think about uh, what is it, basalt. That shit is unreal when it forms octagons. Nature is crazy fascinating.
Energyvibes
Yes, truly!
Love your username btw, I miss Craigs show. Love your kitties ☺️
TheFakeCraigFerguson
Thank you. And yeah. Man is a treasure.
Yufer
I want one and then i will try and make it shiny with a buffer
ICutRocksOnYoutube
I'D STILL CUT IT.
MoreGems
He would still cut it! Lol! Not much to see in these, but you do you man! Cut that cube!
ICutRocksOnYoutube
ITS LIKE... MY WHOLE THING, DUDE.
TheDaharMaster
Anyone who says nature doesn’t build in straight lines can shut the fuck up now.
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Black0rchids
I would like to dedicate this post to my 8th grade art teacher who told me, after looking at a sketch I did, that there are no right angles in nature. I’m 39 and still can’t let go of it. Lol
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Alomega
If I’m correct, it’s more correct to say “no right angles in LIVING nature. (Biology)”
Alomega
(Though, of course, still not completely accurate)
MisterLemons
Unpopular opinion: imperfect is superior.
We live in a world where every facet of everything we do is half-assed to appear perfect and nothing in nature really does that so when I see something flawless or nearly flawless all I can see is "manmade unnatural garbage". I came to this conclusion when looking at a chunk of malachite at a mineral fair. The cheaper specimens all had bits of the stone it was rooted on in them but those just looked so much better.
Copperbrat
Fukinsei 不均整. It's even an art/design aesthetic. Some people (myself included) appreciate fukinsei but think it can also a be a contrivance.
MoreGems
Nothing wrong with liking what you like. I wouldn’t necessarily call it superior, though.
Neednoggle
"Reconstructed and stabilized" = glued back together?
superkp
but like...really good glue.
MoreGems
Yes, pretty much. What they use, I’m not too sure.
mrsdowneyjr
Stabilizer
VanessaBludgeons
Fools Glue
necroticon
Glue
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springer57
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springer57
AVaguelyFamiliarUsername
Best thing is, you can just put them in your mouth. No one is stopping you from the cubic deliciuosenesseses.
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AVaguelyFamiliarUsername
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cryborg
Do an unusual number of fools live in that area?
AVaguelyFamiliarUsername
No, but they are always late and never there.
GSA1386
I've begun to realize that no number of fools is unusual.
onepinksheep
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JeanLucguizamos
I remember pyrite is fools gold because i heard it in a movie like 20 years ago but i cannot for the life of me remind which movie and now it's driving me mad
Thesaya
I had moved on, but had to go back and upvote.
schmau
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thotterpop
Makes me wonder about their thirst for gold back when they first started conquering the Americas
TyrannusEquus
Lot of squares
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prepbatman
I love the multitude of implied puns. Well played!
firlefranz
Sure this isn't wombat poop?
AVaguelyFamiliarUsername
I thought that's pyrite.
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IUpvoteFuturama
It actually has to do with the rain in Spain, not with the number of fools in the area.
MyRespectableAlterEgo
I thought that mainly falls on the plains?
Eroen0
I always wondered, where's that soggy plain?
IUpvoteFuturama
No it falls on rocks too
MyRespectableAlterEgo
Then I’d ask you kindly go to great pains to explain the rainy plains
IUpvoteFuturama
Kyzyl
It's super unusual that those pyrites have that sharply cubic an expression. Often you see the semi-pentagonal expression that rounds the edges and corners.
isetprettygirlsonfire
Geologist here, cubic crystals of pyrite are quite common. It is its most common crystal form. The cubes are an expression of its cubic crystal lattice. Given space, the coreners of the cubes are near atomic level of right angle. Perhaps you're more used to seeing the pyritohedrons (sounds like what you're describing) or octohedrons. But true pentagonal forms are nearly unheard of in nature
isetprettygirlsonfire
But this location in spain does have unusually large and perfect crystals.
dirque
Can these be grown at home?
isetprettygirlsonfire
I don't know, I'm not all that familiar with home growing crystals. But the formula is relatively simple FeS2 (Iron sulfide). But I do know from cleaning up old mines it breaks down with water to form sulfuric acid. There may be issues with byproduct H2S, which is a poison gas.
Knifesmith
"Pyrite occurs in hydrothermal veins, by segregation from magmas, in contact metamorphic rocks, and in sedimentary rocks, such as shale and coal, where it can either fill or replace fossils."... so, unless you have home magma near a watery iron and sulfur source (and I suspect likely under significant pressure), then no.
dirque
so, what you are saying I need to dig my own volcano.
Kyzyl
Semi-pentagonal is close enough for non crystallographers. And most pyrites in the teaching collections and what I have seen in the field all displayed copious amount of pyritohedron expression. Even the cubic stuff had pyritohedral corners and edges.
Outside of these Spanish specimens that get into rock shops, I have never seen truly square-cornered pyrites.
I don't have any good non-personal data on worldwide distribution. Perhaps you live in a region where pyrites go cubic more often.
isetprettygirlsonfire
Also, what part of the world are you that has a prevalence of pyritohedron form? I'd like to check them out if it's within travel range
isetprettygirlsonfire
Again, cubic crystals are the most common form, not pyritohedrons. That is worldwide, in scientific literature and personal observation. Cubcic cyrstals are not just in rock shops. https://www.americanscientist.org/article/the-many-faces-of-fools-gold#:~:text=Cubes%20are%20also%20the%20most,probable%20results%20than%20perfect%20cubes.
Also, you seem to be confusing imperfectly formed cubic corners with crystal form. They are two different characteristics. Sharp corners are definitely not 1/
isetprettygirlsonfire
"Super unusual" as you claim. Maybe you haven't seen them as often, but that doesn't make them highly unusual.
MoreGems
Perfection, size, (and current availability) as you stated earlier is what makes these unusual. There are many cubic pyrites, but not ( in my opinion ) as striking as this Navajún, La Rioja, Spain source of pyrite. Here is another specimen from a source in Peru that has cubic pyrite: https://www.mineralmike.com/products/museum-quality-pyrite-quartz-from-peru