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UV Mineralsflorescent calcite

3rd May 2017 19:04 UTCJennifer Cindrich

I have found fluorescent calcite in my yard. My question is is it common to get different fluorescing colors of calcite out of the same hole that I'm digging. Some pieces on the surface are bright orange. Some of the pieces florescence purple and some of the pieces florescence blue and some of them florescence all of the colors listed. They also are phosphorescent but some out of the same spot or more bright and last longer than others. I am in central Texas in the hill country in the Llano uplift.

3rd May 2017 20:55 UTCAlexander Ringel

It is common to get two different colors of fluorescence on one crystal. But 3 colors on one crystal are uncommon. Not rare but uncommon enough to keep and trade good pieces.

3rd May 2017 23:28 UTCJennifer Cindrich

what if it has four different colors?

4th May 2017 01:43 UTCPaul Brandes 🌟 Manager

jennifer cindrich Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> what if it has four different colors?

Calcite can come in a large range of fluorescent colours, it all depends on what activator(s) (impurities) are in it.

Also, it may not be all calcite. There are plenty of things in the Hill Country that fluoresce and could be mixed with the calcite.

4th May 2017 02:01 UTCAlexander Ringel

4 Colors in a single crystal would be definitly rare. But there has to be excluded, that these colors are caused by other minerals, as Paul Brandes mentioned already. But specimens with multiple minerals and 4 colors of fluorescence or more are demanded by collectors aswell. Depending on intensity, color distribution and beauty of the fluorescence they can have a value. But to estimate this, there should be at least some photos.

4th May 2017 03:36 UTCWayne Corwin

The florescence purple may just be UV reflections.

4th May 2017 12:26 UTCJennifer Cindrich

4th May 2017 12:29 UTCJennifer Cindrich

Its a calcite/aragonite piece. My iphone camera isnt the greatest but the aragonite is a creamy yellow, the calcite is metallic blue, purple, and orange.

4th May 2017 12:39 UTCAlexander Ringel

The last one has nice color combinations. The blue could be another mineral. Not really valuable but definitly a good addition for UV-Mineral collections. Swapping such for specimens of other localities should be easy. When the fluorescence is more intense and covers more of the surface, it becomes a bit valuable.

4th May 2017 13:15 UTCJennifer Cindrich

all the photos are the same specimen. its an 80# rock

4th May 2017 14:04 UTCPaul Brandes 🌟 Manager

It might be the same specimen, but is it the same mineral throughout the specimen?

I believe that's where we're going with this....

4th May 2017 14:25 UTCJennifer Cindrich

I dont know Paul. How could I find out?

4th May 2017 16:00 UTCBob Harman

I, like PAUL B, have some doubt that your specimen is all calcite or aragonite/calcite. The third pix shows an area in the center of the specimen that looks more like chert or chalcedony with very sharp edges and pieces flaking off like flint would.

To help ID your specimen, put several drops of HCl on several areas of the example, including the area where I am concerned. If there is no fizzing, then your example, in that area, would neither be calcite nor aragonite. CHEERS......BOB

5th May 2017 13:14 UTCJennifer Cindrich

it all fizzes

5th May 2017 13:17 UTCJennifer Cindrich

oops thats blurry

and yes, I acid washed the whole thing.

I like the ''look'.

19th May 2017 14:01 UTCJoel Dyer

Hi Jennifer,

I had a look at one of your samples today (Sample2 Site3). In the circled area of one piece, there were minute, bright-red spots that were highly fluorescent (orange-red) and extremely luminescent under 532nm laser, even though I cut the power down to 25% of max.

The bright spots quickly dissolved in water, and the colour looked unnatural, so it looks like that might have been some synthetic contamination. The integration (=exposure) times in both photos are very short & longer exposures did not produce a decent ID spectrum for the possible contamination.

But, another piece I broke of from the same sample had pronounced bluish fluorescence (shown in the photo) and strong blue-white phosporescence that last about 7 seconds afer turning off the UV lamp.

Clearly, both pieces are calcite, but this is the first calcite I've handled that was phosphorescent. I don't know how many localities have phosporescent calcite, so don't know how common the phenomenum in calcite is.

Cheers,

Joel

19th May 2017 22:27 UTCEmil Box

Phosphorescent calcite named in the Gleason-book:

Terlingua, Texas

Miami, Florida

Lovington, Deming, New Mexico

St. Andreasberg, Germany

Agrigento, Sicily

Lieber: Iberg, Winterberg, Germany. Green fluorescing calcite often phosphoresce.

Milo

20th May 2017 12:12 UTCJennifer Cindrich

Joel,

I thank you for your hard work in confirming that the calcite piece is indeed calcite and the phosphorescence that it has.

It is very exciting to me to finally get confirmation on my find in my yard. I will keep digging and see what else I can find, as the color in the pieces I recover keep getting brighter yet!

Cheers,

Jennifer

20th May 2017 13:49 UTCEd Clopton 🌟 Expert

As described in another recent thread, I have specimens of calcite from Pint's quarry, Raymond, Iowa, and Moscow quarry, Moscow, Iowa that both fluoresce and phosphoresce. Sorry, but I have no technical info about the cause of the fluorescence/phosphorescence at those localities. The fluorite from Pint's is also strongly fluorescent and phosphorescent.

20th May 2017 23:04 UTCWayne Corwin

Jennifer

How deep have you dug so far?

21st May 2017 11:59 UTCJennifer Cindrich

Wayne,

About one foot- to a foot 1/2 deep.

Jennifer

21st May 2017 18:24 UTCEmil Box

I made some measurements.

Green (greenish) fluorescent calcite that phosphoresce:

Rauris, Austria

Nuxis, Sardegna, Italy

Brandberg, Namibia

Lavrio, Greece (red fluorescing don't phosphoresce)

Dornap, Germany

Hagen-Halden, Germany

Orange fluorescing with phosphorescence:

Hildfeld, Germany

Gleason (1960):

Zins sulfide made phosphorescent with a trace of copper.

Dye solutions made phosphorescent with gelatin.

Milo

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