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The Burren, Clare County, Munster, Irelandi
Regional Level Types
The BurrenProtected Area
Clare CountyCounty
MunsterProvince
IrelandCountry

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PhotosMapsSearch
02455950017272057169162.jpg
Landscape near Poulnabrone Dolmen

The Burren, Clare County, Munster, Ireland
02722580017272057176004.jpg
The Burren by the Atlantic coast

The Burren, Clare County, Munster, Ireland
02907280017272057188941.jpg
Plan of fluorite mine

Doolin Fluorspar Mine, Lisdoonvarna, The Burren, Clare County, Munster, Ireland
02455950017272057169162.jpg
Landscape near Poulnabrone Dolmen

The Burren, Clare County, Munster, Ireland
02722580017272057176004.jpg
The Burren by the Atlantic coast

The Burren, Clare County, Munster, Ireland
02907280017272057188941.jpg
Plan of fluorite mine

Doolin Fluorspar Mine, Lisdoonvarna, The Burren, Clare County, Munster, Ireland
02455950017272057169162.jpg
Landscape near Poulnabrone Dolmen

The Burren, Clare County, Munster, Ireland
02722580017272057176004.jpg
The Burren by the Atlantic coast

The Burren, Clare County, Munster, Ireland
Latitude & Longitude (WGS84):
53° 0' 28'' North , 9° 0' 8'' West
Latitude & Longitude (decimal):
53.00778,-9.00222
GeoHash:
G#: gc3te1ub9
GRN:
N36W04
Type:
Protected Area
Köppen climate type:
Cfb : Temperate oceanic climate
Nearest Settlements:
PlacePopulationDistance
Boston570 (2010)5.4km
Corofin689 (2013)7.8km
Crusheen467 (2013)10.5km
Gort2,644 (2013)14.0km
Kilfenora220 (2013)14.2km
Mindat Locality ID:
26920
Long-form identifier:
mindat:1:2:26920:8
GUID (UUID V4):
0


The Burren (/ˈbʌrən/; Irish: Boireann, meaning "great rock") is a region of environmental interest primarily located in northwestern County Clare, Ireland, dominated by glaciated karst (or sometimes glaciokarst) landscape. It measures, depending on the definition, between 250 square kilometres (97 sq mi) and 560 square kilometres (220 sq mi). The name is most often applied to the area within the circle made by the villages of Tubber, Corofin, Kilfenora, Lisdoonvarna, and Ballyvaughan, and Kinvara in extreme south-western Galway, including the adjacent coastline.

A part of the Burren forms the Burren National Park, the smallest of the six National Parks in Ireland, while the full Burren and adjacent territory including the Cliffs of Moher are included in the Burren and Cliffs of Moher Geopark.

One of Oliver Cromwell's generals famously remarked ''There isn't tree to hang a man, water to drown a man nor soil to bury a man'' about the protected karstic scenery in North Clare known as The Burren. A geologic terrain of exposed Carboniferous (Mississippian) limestone with sparse but exotic vegetation, caves, and mineralization.

Numerous small veins of calcite/fluorite carrying minor amounts of galena, sphalerite and chalcopyrite are common throughout the region.

The mineralisation is explained by a model in which sulphide infills are scavenged from underlying basement rocks or hydrothermal Zn-Pb mineralisation during the tectonic inversion of post-rift sequences overlying Lower Carboniferous normal faults (Walsh et al., 2019).

Select Mineral List Type

Standard Detailed Gallery Strunz Chemical Elements

Commodity List

This is a list of exploitable or exploited mineral commodities recorded from this region.


Mineral List

Mineral list contains entries from the region specified including sub-localities

17 valid minerals.

Detailed Mineral List:

ⓘ Anglesite
Formula: PbSO4
ⓘ 'Apatite'
Formula: Ca5(PO4)3(Cl/F/OH)
ⓘ 'Apatite var. Collophane'
Formula: Ca5(PO4)3(Cl/F/OH)
ⓘ 'Bindheimite'
Formula: Pb2Sb2O6O
ⓘ Bournonite
Formula: PbCuSbS3
ⓘ Calcite
Formula: CaCO3
Localities: Reported from at least 7 localities in this region.
ⓘ Cerussite
Formula: PbCO3
Habit: Prismatic
Colour: Colourless, white
Fluorescence: Pale yellow
Description: Found on oxidising galena specimens.
ⓘ Chalcopyrite
Formula: CuFeS2
ⓘ Fluorapatite
Formula: Ca5(PO4)3F
ⓘ Fluorite
Formula: CaF2
Localities: Reported from at least 6 localities in this region.
Habit: Cubic
Colour: Colourless, orange, lilac, to deep purple
Description: Extremely common throughout the spoil as it accounted for a large portion of the lode. The majority of smithsonite is found cementing heavily fractured fluorite together. Purple cubic crystals are often coated with mammilated smithsonite. Very rarely purple cubes can be found associated with limestone matrices.
ⓘ Galena
Formula: PbS
ⓘ Greenockite
Formula: CdS
ⓘ Hydrozincite
Formula: Zn5(CO3)2(OH)6
Colour: White
ⓘ Malachite
Formula: Cu2(CO3)(OH)2
Colour: Green
Description: Rarely found as coatings on oxidised chalcopyrite.
ⓘ Otavite
Formula: CdCO3
Habit: Skeletal crystals
Colour: White
Fluorescence: Pink
Description: Microscopic white otavite crystals are found on smithsonite containing high amounts of cadmium.
References:
Dr. David Green
ⓘ Pyromorphite
Formula: Pb5(PO4)3Cl
ⓘ Quartz
Formula: SiO2
ⓘ Rosasite
Formula: (Cu,Zn)2(CO3)(OH)2
ⓘ Smithsonite
Formula: ZnCO3
Habit: Botryoidal, Tetrahedral.
Colour: Yellow,Orange to Green
Description: Very difficult to find nowadays, several specimens in the Barry Flannery Collection show distinct tetrahedra albeit slightly rounded. Mammilations and botryoids are by far the most common although some botryoids/mammilations show tetrahedra under magnification and even microscopic spheres...
ⓘ Sphalerite
Formula: ZnS

List of minerals arranged by Strunz 10th Edition classification

Group 2 - Sulphides and Sulfosalts
ⓘSphalerite2.CB.05aZnS
ⓘChalcopyrite2.CB.10aCuFeS2
ⓘGreenockite2.CB.45CdS
ⓘGalena2.CD.10PbS
ⓘBournonite2.GA.50PbCuSbS3
Group 3 - Halides
ⓘFluorite3.AB.25CaF2
Group 4 - Oxides and Hydroxides
ⓘQuartz4.DA.05SiO2
ⓘ'Bindheimite'4.DH.20Pb2Sb2O6O
Group 5 - Nitrates and Carbonates
ⓘCalcite5.AB.05CaCO3
ⓘOtavite5.AB.05CdCO3
ⓘSmithsonite5.AB.05ZnCO3
ⓘCerussite5.AB.15PbCO3
ⓘMalachite5.BA.10Cu2(CO3)(OH)2
ⓘRosasite5.BA.10(Cu,Zn)2(CO3)(OH)2
ⓘHydrozincite5.BA.15Zn5(CO3)2(OH)6
Group 7 - Sulphates, Chromates, Molybdates and Tungstates
ⓘAnglesite7.AD.35PbSO4
Group 8 - Phosphates, Arsenates and Vanadates
ⓘFluorapatite8.BN.05Ca5(PO4)3F
ⓘPyromorphite8.BN.05Pb5(PO4)3Cl
Unclassified
ⓘ'Apatite
var. Collophane'		-Ca5(PO4)3(Cl/F/OH)
ⓘ''-Ca5(PO4)3(Cl/F/OH)

List of minerals for each chemical element

HHydrogen
Hⓘ HydrozinciteZn5(CO3)2(OH)6
Hⓘ MalachiteCu2(CO3)(OH)2
Hⓘ Rosasite(Cu,Zn)2(CO3)(OH)2
Hⓘ Apatite var. CollophaneCa5(PO4)3(Cl/F/OH)
Hⓘ ApatiteCa5(PO4)3(Cl/F/OH)
CCarbon
Cⓘ CalciteCaCO3
Cⓘ CerussitePbCO3
Cⓘ HydrozinciteZn5(CO3)2(OH)6
Cⓘ MalachiteCu2(CO3)(OH)2
Cⓘ OtaviteCdCO3
Cⓘ Rosasite(Cu,Zn)2(CO3)(OH)2
Cⓘ SmithsoniteZnCO3
OOxygen
Oⓘ AnglesitePbSO4
Oⓘ BindheimitePb2Sb2O6O
Oⓘ CalciteCaCO3
Oⓘ CerussitePbCO3
Oⓘ FluorapatiteCa5(PO4)3F
Oⓘ HydrozinciteZn5(CO3)2(OH)6
Oⓘ MalachiteCu2(CO3)(OH)2
Oⓘ OtaviteCdCO3
Oⓘ PyromorphitePb5(PO4)3Cl
Oⓘ QuartzSiO2
Oⓘ Rosasite(Cu,Zn)2(CO3)(OH)2
Oⓘ SmithsoniteZnCO3
Oⓘ Apatite var. CollophaneCa5(PO4)3(Cl/F/OH)
Oⓘ ApatiteCa5(PO4)3(Cl/F/OH)
FFluorine
Fⓘ FluorapatiteCa5(PO4)3F
Fⓘ FluoriteCaF2
Fⓘ Apatite var. CollophaneCa5(PO4)3(Cl/F/OH)
Fⓘ ApatiteCa5(PO4)3(Cl/F/OH)
SiSilicon
Siⓘ QuartzSiO2
PPhosphorus
Pⓘ FluorapatiteCa5(PO4)3F
Pⓘ PyromorphitePb5(PO4)3Cl
Pⓘ Apatite var. CollophaneCa5(PO4)3(Cl/F/OH)
Pⓘ ApatiteCa5(PO4)3(Cl/F/OH)
SSulfur
Sⓘ AnglesitePbSO4
Sⓘ BournonitePbCuSbS3
Sⓘ ChalcopyriteCuFeS2
Sⓘ GalenaPbS
Sⓘ GreenockiteCdS
Sⓘ SphaleriteZnS
ClChlorine
Clⓘ PyromorphitePb5(PO4)3Cl
Clⓘ Apatite var. CollophaneCa5(PO4)3(Cl/F/OH)
Clⓘ ApatiteCa5(PO4)3(Cl/F/OH)
CaCalcium
Caⓘ CalciteCaCO3
Caⓘ FluorapatiteCa5(PO4)3F
Caⓘ FluoriteCaF2
Caⓘ Apatite var. CollophaneCa5(PO4)3(Cl/F/OH)
Caⓘ ApatiteCa5(PO4)3(Cl/F/OH)
FeIron
Feⓘ ChalcopyriteCuFeS2
CuCopper
Cuⓘ BournonitePbCuSbS3
Cuⓘ ChalcopyriteCuFeS2
Cuⓘ MalachiteCu2(CO3)(OH)2
Cuⓘ Rosasite(Cu,Zn)2(CO3)(OH)2
ZnZinc
Znⓘ HydrozinciteZn5(CO3)2(OH)6
Znⓘ Rosasite(Cu,Zn)2(CO3)(OH)2
Znⓘ SmithsoniteZnCO3
Znⓘ SphaleriteZnS
CdCadmium
Cdⓘ GreenockiteCdS
Cdⓘ OtaviteCdCO3
SbAntimony
Sbⓘ BindheimitePb2Sb2O6O
Sbⓘ BournonitePbCuSbS3
PbLead
Pbⓘ AnglesitePbSO4
Pbⓘ BindheimitePb2Sb2O6O
Pbⓘ BournonitePbCuSbS3
Pbⓘ CerussitePbCO3
Pbⓘ GalenaPbS
Pbⓘ PyromorphitePb5(PO4)3Cl

Other Databases

Wikipedia:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Burren
Wikidata ID:Q917858

Localities in this Region

Ireland
Ireland

Other Regions, Features and Areas containing this locality

British and Irish IslesGroup of Islands
Eurasian PlateTectonic Plate
EuropeContinent
Ireland (island)Island

This page contains all mineral locality references listed on mindat.org. This does not claim to be a complete list. If you know of more minerals from this site, please register so you can add to our database. This locality information is for reference purposes only. You should never attempt to visit any sites listed in mindat.org without first ensuring that you have the permission of the land and/or mineral rights holders for access and that you are aware of all safety precautions necessary.

References

Flannery, Barry (n.d.) Personal communication.
McNamara, M., Hennessy, R. (2010) The geology of the Burren region, Co. Clare, Ireland. Project NEEDN, The Burren Connect Project, 1st Ed. (Ennistymon: Clare County Council).
Walsh, John J., Moore, John Paul, Bunce, Colin, Hollis, Steve P., Kelly, John, Menuge, Julian F. (2019) The origin and nature of hydraulic fractures and veins within the Burren, County Clare, Ireland. Irish Journal of Earth Sciences: 37: 61-84. https://doi.org/10.3318/ijes.2019.37.5
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