Artinite
Artinite is really a fairly rare carbonate mineral that is extremely rare as being a gem that is faceted. This is certainly due to the fact that Artinite typically types as crusts of acicular to fibrous aggregates usually formed into tight balls which can be perfectly spherical. It’s almost always associated with ultra-basic igneous and rocks that are metamorphic as serpentine. Artinite mineral specimens are really attractive with snow white fibrous balls sitting on a jade serpentine matrix that is green.
Artinite is available in several locations worldwide. Well-studied or specimen that are good, from: Italy, in Lombardy, from the Franscia asbestos mine, at Torre Santa Maria and Rocca Castellaccio, Val Lanterna, all in Val Malenco; at Emarese and Cogne, Val d’Aosta, Piedmont; from Viu, near Fubina, Val di Lanzo; and on Mont Ramazzo, north of Borzoli, Liguria. From Kraubath, Styria, Austria. Near Javornica, Bulgaria. Within the United States Of America, in California, from northwest of Coalinga, Fresno County and into San Benito County, as fine examples at the Clear Creek mine, west of San Benito Mountain, and elsewhere in the New Idria district; during the Gabbs mine, Gabbs district, Nye County, Nevada; from Spring Street, Staten Island, brand new York; at Signal Hill, Hoboken, Hudson County, New Jersey; in the Belvidere Mountain quarry, Orleans County, Vermont. In Japan, from Nakauri, Aichi Prefecture, at Hirotani, Fukuoka Prefecture, and along the Utonai River, Hokkaido. From the Ijim massif, Sayan Mountains, Siberia, Russia.
| Chemical Formula: | Mg2(CO3)(OH)2•3(H2O) |
| Hydrated Magnesium Carbonate Hydroxide | |
| Molecular Weight: | 196.68 gm |
| Composition: | Magnesium | 24.72 % | Mg | 40.98 % | MgO |
| Hydrogen | 4.10 % | H | 36.64 % | H2O | |
| Carbon | 6.11 % | C | 22.38 % | CO2 | |
| Oxygen | 65.08 % | O | |||
| 100.00 % | 100.00 % | = TOTAL OXIDE |
| Crystallography: | Monoclinic |
| Crystal Habit: | Typically acicular along [010], to 2.5 cm, forming cross-fiber veinlets, botyroidal masses or crusts of silky fibers, and spherical or bow tie aggregates of divergent crystals. |
| Twinning: | None |
| Cleavage: | Perfect on {100}, Good on {001} |
| Fracture: | Irregular/Uneven |
| Tenacity: | Brittle |
| Moh’s Hardness: | 2.5 |
| Density: | 2.01 – 2.03 (g/cm3) |
| Luminescence: | None |
| Radioactivity: | Not Radioactive |
| Other: | Readily soluble with effervescence in cold acids. |
| Color: | White; Colorless in transmitted light |
| Transparency: | Translucent to Transparent |
| Luster: | Vitreous, Silky to Satiny in aggregates |
| Refractive Index: | 1.488 – 1.557 Biaxial ( – ) |
| Birefringence: | 0.0680 |
| Dispersion: | None |
| Pleochroism: | None |
| Other: | Optic axis nearly perpendicular to {100} |
