THE
MINERAL VALENTINITE
- Chemical Formula: Sb2O3, Antimony Oxide.
- Class: Oxides and Hydroxides
- Uses: A minor ore of antimony and as mineral specimens.
Specimens
Valentinite is a high lustered, often fibrous oxide mineral. It forms sprays of crystals that are usually matted to the host rock in radiating clusters. Its adamantine (gem-like) to pearly luster serves to add a nice quality to this uncommon antimony mineral.
Valentinite is dimorphous with the mineral senarmontite. Both minerals have the exact same chemistry, but they have different structures. Senarmontite is isometric and valentinite is orthorhombic. It is similar to the situation between diamond and graphite. Valentinite is associated with senarmontite as well as stibnite. Actually this association is no surprise since both senarmontite and valentinite are oxidation products of the antimony sulfide.
PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS:
- Color is colorless, white, yellow, reddish or gray.
- Luster is adamantine or pearly.
- Transparency: Crystals are translucent to opaque in more massive specimens.
- Crystal System is orthorhombic.
- Crystal Habits include prismatic to fibrous and compact aggregates forming tufts and radiating sprays. Also massive and granular. Individual crystals are complexly faceted.
- Cleavage is perfect.
- Fracture is uneven.
- Hardness is 2.5 - 3.
- Specific Gravity is approximately 5.7 (heavier than average).
- Streak is white.
- Associated Minerals include quartz, stibnite , native antimony, senarmontite, kermesite, stibiconite and other antimony minerals.
- Notable Occurrences include the Sensa Mine, Ain Beida, Qacentina (Constantine), Algeria; Freiberg, Germany; Dauphine, France; Bolivia; Pribram, Czech Republic; and Ham Sud Township, Wolfe County, Quebec, Canada.
- Best Field Indicators are crystal habit, high luster, associations and specific gravity.
 Amethyst Galleries' Mineral Gallery MINERALS |
VALENTINITE specimen val-1
$ 150.00
$ 150.00
Dims: 1.9 x 1.5 x 1.4" (4.8 x 3.9 x 3.7 cm)
Wt: 7.3 oz. (208 g)
Pribram, Czech Republic
Many very small Valentinite blades rest on the galena base of this hand specimen. These crystals do not exceed 0.2" (5 mm) in length, and most are half that length or less. They are in fair to good condition, as most appear to be damaged to some extent, and their orthorhombic form, though heavily intergrown, appears to be good. All have a milky-white coloration and a very bright, pearly luster that reminds me of cerussite. The galena base is definitely crystalline, but no isolated crystals are present.
val-1 ($150.00)
Pribram, Czech Republic
VALENTINITE specimen val-2
$ 48.00
$ 48.00
Dims: 1.10x0.78x0.65" (2.80x1.98x1.65cm)
Wt: 0.51oz (14.4g)
Cerro Rico de Potosi, Bolivia
This dull black rock is host to both a matting of fine translucent valentinite crystals and several clusters of fibrous yet transparent valentinite crystals. The latter are quite rare, as they are large enough to examine, at least with a 15x loupe! There is also a non-crystalline white crust present, which I believe is not valentinite, and is difficult to differentiate except with a loupe which reveals the fine individual crystals in a mat-like array of valentinite.
val-2 ($ 48.00)
Cerro Rico de Potosi, Bolivia