Wulfenite

Wulfenite is an oxide mineral of lead and molybdenum. It has the composition PbMoO4 . This sample is from the Glove Mine, Santa Cruz County, Arizona . It is on display in the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History. The sample measures about 25 cm across.

The wulfenite forms closely packed plate crystals. This sample is from Chiahuahua, Mexico.

This sample is about 30 cm across.

These wulfenite crystals offer a strong contrast to the plate-like crystals above.

Another example of the plate habit of formation is from a 25x18 cm sample originating in the San Francisco mine, Sonora, Mexico. The plates are 2-3 cm in size. The butterscotch colored wulfenite crystals are sprinkled with orange crystals of mimetite. Impurities of chromium colors the wulfenite with shades of yellow, orange and red.

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