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.
|
Index |