Adamite
Adamite is really a zinc that is rare mineral that belongs to the Olivenite Group of minerals which also includes Tarbuttite and others. It’s a mineral that is secondary in zinc deposits containing arsenic-bearing minerals. Adamite is quite popular among enthusiasts of fluorescent minerals due to its bright yellow to fluorescence that is green brief revolution UV light. You will see the bright green fluorescence the gem exhibits under shortwave UV light in the event that you hover your cursor over the photo towards the top of these pages. Adamite is isostructural with the minerals Olivenite and Libethenite. This means they share the crystal that is exact same and similar crystal shapes.
There are many varieties of Adamite which can be based on additional chemical compounds added to the Adamite formula. These are Alumino Adamite, Cobaltoan Adamite, Cuprian Adamite (Cuproadamite), Manganoan Adamite (Manganadamite), Nickeloan Adamite. Of those, I have just found two of these varieties which have been faceted; Cuprian Adamite and Manganoan Adamite.
Adamite was named in 1866 by French mineralogist and chemist Charles Friedel (1832-1899) in honor of Gilbert-Joseph Adam (1795-1881), Auditor of Finance for the French Government, who supplied initial specimens of this mineral. Adam was a wealthy mineral collector and his mineral collection had been described in Annales des Mines in 1869 and also in a posted catalog the year that is same. Adam’s mineral collection was eventually obtained by the École des Mines, Paris, France. He was a known member of Société géologique de France and received the honor of Commandeur de la Légion d’Honneur. Adam ended up being also the discoverer regarding the minerals Aerugite, Chenevixite, Corkite, Cuprotungstite, Scacchite, and Xanthiosite.
The Ojuela Mine, Mapimí, Mun. de Mapimí, Durango, Mexico although you will find many sources of Adamite mineral specimens, there has been only 1 source of gem quality crystals. There have been some stunning, deep crystals that are green at the Tsumeb Mine, Tsumeb, Otjikoto area, Namibia, however these are generally too small for faceting.
Adamite circulation: a number of localities; some for studied material or specimens that are fine: from Chañarcillo, south of Copiapó, Atacama, Chile. In Mexico, big crystals at the Ojuela mine, Mapimí, Durango; in the Hidalgo mine, Zimapán, Hidalgo; and from Santa Eulalia, Chihuahua. In america, at Gold Hill, Tooele County, Utah, and in the Mohawk mine, Clark Mountains, San Bernardino County, California. At the Cap Garonne mine, near le Pradet, Var, France. From Reichenbach, near Bensheim, Hesse, and in the Clara mine, near Oberwolfach, Ebony Forest, Germany. In England, from several places in Cornwall, and at Caldbeck Fells, Cumbria. In the Kamariza mine, Laurium, Greece. Large crystals from Tsumeb, Namibia. At the Puttapa zinc mine, near Beltana, as well as on Mt. Painter, Flinders Ranges, Southern Australia.
| Chemical Formula: | Zn2(AsO4)(OH) |
| Zinc Arsenate Hydroxide | |
| Molecular Weight: | 286.71 gm |
| Composition: | Zinc | 45.61 % | Zn | 56.78 % | ZnO |
| Arsenic | 26.13 % | As | 40.08 % | As2O5 | |
| Hydrogen | 0.35 % | H | 3.14 % | H2O | |
| Oxygen | 27.90 % | O | |||
| 100.00 % | 100.00 % | = TOTAL OXIDE |
| Crystallography: | Orthorhombic – Dipyramidal |
| Crystal Habit: | Crystals are typically elongated, to 8 cm, may be tabular or equant; many other forms, usually in radial aggregates, fanlike rosettes, or crystalline crusts. |
| Color: | Yellow-green, brownish, colorless, pink, violet. |
| Twinning: | None |
| Cleavage: | Good on {101}, Poor on {010} |
| Fracture: | Irregular, Uneven to Subconchoidal |
| Tenacity: | Very Brittle |
| Moh’s Hardness: | 3.5 |
| Density: | 4.32 – 4.38 (g/cm3) |
| Lustre: | Vitreous |
| Transparency: | Transparent,Translucent |
| Luminescence: | May fluoresce and phosphoresce lemon-yellow or bright green under SW and LW UV. |
| Refractive Index: | 1.708 to 1.773 |
| Radioactivity: | Not Radioacitve |
