Copper

Native Copper Copper is not a mineral but an element on the periodic table. It is a soft, malleable metal with high conductivity. Natural veins of Copper are found all over the world, and with high industrial uses, this element is particularly sought after. It was first reported by Pliny the Elder in 77 A. D.

and named after the Greek word "kyprios" referring to its original discovery within Cyprus (an island country off the Middle East). Copper is a key component in other minerals such as Turquoise, Malachite, Shattuckite, and Covellite. One of the oldest medical texts known to man is the Edwin Smith Papyrus. This text was purchased by Edwin in 1862 and is estimated to be from the Egyptian civilization dating back to 2,600 B. C.

This advanced medical journal provides detailed instructions for diagnostic, medical procedures, and aftercare. Within these Papyrus pages, Copper has been identified through petroglyphs as a leading tool in various aspects of the ancient medical field. Cooper was suggested as a use to sterilize wounds and drinking water. A green powder was created from a Copper-bearing mineral (Malachite) and used during various medical procedures. What is even more fascinating is that researchers believed that this text is a copy of an even OLDER medical writing!

It makes you wonder how these societies were able to be so advanced so long ago. Native copper is an uncombined form of copper that occurs as a natural mineral. Copper is one of the few metallic elements to occur in native form, although it most commonly occurs in oxidized states and mixed with other elements. Native copper was an important ore of copper in historic times and was used by pre-historic peoples. Native copper occurs rarely as isometric cubic and octahedral crystals, but more typically as irregular masses and fracture fillings.

It has a reddish, orangish, and/or brownish color on fresh surfaces, but typically is weathered and coated with a green tarnish of copper(II) carbonate (also known as patina or verdigris). Copper deposits are typically formed by hydrothermal processes associated with igneous activity. These processes involve the circulation of hot, mineral-rich fluids through fractures and other openings in the surrounding rock. As the fluids cool, the minerals they carry are deposited in veins, fractures, and other structural features. Copper is also found in sedimentary rocks and in some deposits associated with volcanic activity.

In addition, copper can be found in trace amounts in seawater, although the concentration is too low to be economically viable for mining. Copper minerals are found in many parts of the world, and copper production is a major industry in many countries. The top copper producing countries in the world include Chile, Peru, China, the United States, Australia, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Zambia, Russia, and Canada.