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Identity Helpcelestine

30th Jan 2007 02:31 UTCPaul L. Boyer

I recently purchased some celestine crystals coated with an orange mineral. It was suggested that this coating was pyrite. The speciman is from the Stoneco Quarry, Ohio and MinDat has both pyrite and celestine being present there. However, it doesn't quite look like any pyrite I have seen before and I need some expert eyes. Since I am not good at mineral picture, I have included the link to the auction lot. Any feedback is appreciated.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ih=009&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWN%3AIT&viewitem=&item=190072636497&rd=1&rd=1#ebayphotohosting

30th Jan 2007 03:55 UTCPaul L. Boyer

On inspection, I wonder if the underlying crystals are indeed celestine. Looks pretty cubic, but then, I am not an expert on all forms of celestine.....

30th Jan 2007 04:08 UTCPaul L. Boyer

Never mind. Temporary stupidity. I got it out of the Perky box and what appeared cubic from the outside turns out to be hexagonal on the ends once you can see it better. It is not an equal sided hexagon. It is a somewhat elongated hexagon, which would fit celestine. Once I could see a sample not coated with the mystery orange coating, it was a blue-white coloration. Still, other opinions are wanted.

30th Jan 2007 05:03 UTCEverett

Hi Paul,

Looks like an Fe oxide coating...

nice piece none the less!!

Everett

30th Jan 2007 05:22 UTCBill Baker Barr

This celestine habit is definitely a typical Lime City occurrence. I have collected there numerous times, though not in the last few years, alas! The orange color is probably rust from the weathering of pyrite, so I suppose you could consider it a mixture of iron oxides and hydroxides, a la limonite: hematite, goethite, lepidocrocite, etc.

Lime City has been a great producer of several minerals. Fine celestine, blue and/or white, is most common, usually in flattened pseudohexagonal crystals with a flat pinacoidal termination, often fluorescent & phosphorescent, presumably from strontianite inclusions; a cave was opened up back in the 70s, I believe, that yielded literally tons of specimens! Tea to root beer-colored fluorite resembles Clay Center material, but without the bladed white celestine found there. Calcite, mostly in dogtooth crystals from nearly colorless to amber, sometimes occurs in large vugs. Ruby sphalerite and pyrite are found in small, lustrous crystals, while galena is known as micro material. White to orange-yellow aragonite and/or strontianite occur as plushy linings of acicular crystals in small vugs.

31st Jan 2007 06:52 UTCDonovan Wood

hi paul

Im from south africa and here we get a lot quartz crystals (orange river quartz) with a hematite covering and inclusion. It looks the some colour to the specimen that you have but i have not heard of it covering celestine before

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