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Pyrargyrite

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Pyrargyrite

St Andreasberg, St Andreasberg District, Harz, Lower Saxony, Germany
Pyrargyrite, etc.

Millotingo Mine, Pacococha, Huarochiri Province, Lima Department, Peru
Pyrargyrite, etc.

Silver tunnel, Van Silver Property, Brandywine Creek, Vancouver Mining Division, British Columbia, Canada
Pyrargyrite, etc.

Millotingo Mine, Pacococha, Huarochiri Province, Lima Department, Peru
Pyrargyrite

St Andreasberg, St Andreasberg District, Harz, Lower Saxony, Germany
Pyrargyrite, etc.

Millotingo Mine, Pacococha, Huarochiri Province, Lima Department, Peru
Pyrargyrite, etc.

Silver tunnel, Van Silver Property, Brandywine Creek, Vancouver Mining Division, British Columbia, Canada
Pyrargyrite, etc.

Millotingo Mine, Pacococha, Huarochiri Province, Lima Department, Peru
Pyrargyrite

St Andreasberg, St Andreasberg District, Harz, Lower Saxony, Germany
Pyrargyrite, etc.

Millotingo Mine, Pacococha, Huarochiri Province, Lima Department, Peru
Formula:
Ag3SbS3
Colour:
Deep red or red gray
Lustre:
Adamantine
Hardness:
2½
Specific Gravity:
5.82
Crystal System:
Trigonal
Name:
From the Greek, pyr and argyros, "fire-silver" in allusion to its color and silver content.
Dimorph of:
Pyrostilpnite
Proustite Group.
Proustite-Pyrargyrite Series.
Trigonal dimorph of Pyrostilpnite.

Visit gemdat.org for gemological information about Pyrargyrite.


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Classification of PyrargyriteHide

IMA status:
Approved, 'Grandfathered' (first described prior to 1959)
Strunz 8th ed.:
2/E.07-20
Nickel-Strunz 10th (pending) ed.:
2.GA.05

2 : SULFIDES and SULFOSALTS (sulfides, selenides, tellurides; arsenides, antimonides, bismuthides; sulfarsenites, sulfantimonites, sulfbismuthites, etc.)
G : Sulfarsenites, sulfantimonites, sulfbismuthites
A : Neso-sulfarsenites, etc. without additional S
Dana 8th ed.:
3.4.1.2

3 : SULFOSALTS
4 : ø = 3
Hey's CIM Ref.:
5.2.9

5 : Sulphosalts - Sulpharsenites and Sulphobismuthites (those containing Sn, Ge,or V are in Section 6)
2 : Sulpharsenites etc. of Ag

Physical Properties of PyrargyriteHide

Lustre:
Adamantine
Transparency:
Translucent
Comment:
Darkens with exposure to light
Colour:
Deep red or red gray
Streak:
Purplish red
Hardness:
2½ on Mohs scale
Tenacity:
Brittle
Cleavage:
Distinct/Good
Distinct on {1011} very imperfect on {0112}
Fracture:
Irregular/Uneven, Conchoidal
Density:
5.82 g/cm3 (Measured)    5.855 g/cm3 (Calculated)

Optical Data of PyrargyriteHide

Type:
Uniaxial (-)
RI values:
nω = 3.084 nε = 2.881
Max Birefringence:
δ = 0.203
Image shows birefringence interference colour range (at 30µm thickness)
and does not take into account mineral colouration.
Surface Relief:
Very High
Type:
Anisotropic
Anisotropism:
Strong in yellow white and grey blue
Pleochroism:
Weak

Chemical Properties of PyrargyriteHide

Formula:
Ag3SbS3
Elements listed:
Ag, S, Sb - search for minerals with similar chemistry
Common Impurities:
As

Crystallography of PyrargyriteHide

Crystal System:
Trigonal
Class (H-M):
3m - Ditrigonal Pyramidal
Space Group:
R3c
Cell Parameters:
a = 11.047 Å, c = 8.719 Å
Ratio:
a:c = 1 : 0.789
Unit Cell V:
921.48 ų (Calculated from Unit Cell)
Z:
6
Morphology:
Prismatic crystals
Twinning:
On {1014}, less commonly on {1011}{1120} rarely {0120}

Crystallographic forms of PyrargyriteHide

Crystal Atlas:
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Pyrargyrite no.8 - Goldschmidt (1913-1926)
3d models and HTML5 code kindly provided by www.smorf.nl.

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Edge Lines | Miller Indicies | Axes

Transparency
Opaque | Translucent | Transparent

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Along a-axis | Along b-axis | Along c-axis | Start rotation | Stop rotation

X-Ray Powder DiffractionHide

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Radiation - Copper Kα
Data Set:
Data courtesy of RRUFF project at University of Arizona, used with permission.

Synonyms of PyrargyriteHide

Other Language Names for PyrargyriteHide

Relationship of Pyrargyrite to other SpeciesHide

Structurally related to group(s):
Proustite Group
Forms a series with:
ProustiteProustite-Pyrargyrite Series

Common AssociatesHide

Associated Minerals Based on Photo Data:
Calcite82 photos of Pyrargyrite associated with Calcite on mindat.org.
Quartz70 photos of Pyrargyrite associated with Quartz on mindat.org.
Galena24 photos of Pyrargyrite associated with Galena on mindat.org.
Pyrite21 photos of Pyrargyrite associated with Pyrite on mindat.org.
Sphalerite21 photos of Pyrargyrite associated with Sphalerite on mindat.org.
Acanthite19 photos of Pyrargyrite associated with Acanthite on mindat.org.
Polybasite17 photos of Pyrargyrite associated with Polybasite on mindat.org.
Miargyrite17 photos of Pyrargyrite associated with Miargyrite on mindat.org.
Silver14 photos of Pyrargyrite associated with Silver on mindat.org.
Stephanite12 photos of Pyrargyrite associated with Stephanite on mindat.org.

Related Minerals - Nickel-Strunz GroupingHide

2.GA.05ProustiteAg3AsS3Trig. 3m (3 2/m) : R3c
2.GA.10PyrostilpniteAg3SbS3Mon.
2.GA.10XanthoconiteAg3AsS3Mon. 2/m : B2/b
2.GA.15SamsoniteAg4MnSb2S6Mon. 2/m : P21/m
2.GA.20SkinneriteCu3SbS3Mon. 2/m : P21/b
2.GA.20WitticheniteCu3BiS3Orth. 2 2 2 : P21 21 21
2.GA.25LapieiteNiCuSbS3Orth.
2.GA.25MückeiteNiCu(Bi,Sb)S3Orth. 2 2 2 : P21 21 21
2.GA.25MalyshevitePdCuBiS3Orth. mmm (2/m 2/m 2/m) : Pmmm
2.GA.25LisiguangitePtCuBiS3Orth. 2 2 2 : P21 21 21
2.GA.30AktashiteCu6Hg3As4S12Trig. 3 : R3
2.GA.30GruzdeviteCu6Hg3Sb4S12Trig.
2.GA.30NowackiiteCu6Zn3As4S12Trig. 3 : R3
2.GA.35LaffittiteAgHgAsS3Mon.
2.GA.40RouthieriteTl(Cu,Ag)(Hg,Zn)2(As,Sb)2S6Tet. 4 2m : I4 2m
2.GA.40StalderiteTl(Cu,Ag)(Zn,Fe,Hg)2(As,Sb)2S6Tet.
2.GA.45ErniggliiteTl2SnAs2S6Trig.
2.GA.50BournonitePbCuSbS3Orth. mm2 : Pmn21
2.GA.50SeligmannitePbCuAsS3Orth. mmm (2/m 2/m 2/m) : Pmmn
2.GA.50SoučekitePbCuBi(S,Se)3Orth.

Related Minerals - Dana Grouping (8th Ed.)Hide

3.4.1.1ProustiteAg3AsS3Trig. 3m (3 2/m) : R3c

Related Minerals - Hey's Chemical Index of Minerals GroupingHide

5.2.1SmithiteAgAsS2Mon. 2/m
5.2.2TrechmanniteAgAsS2Trig.
5.2.3ProustiteAg3AsS3Trig. 3m (3 2/m) : R3c
5.2.4XanthoconiteAg3AsS3Mon. 2/m : B2/b
5.2.5Pearceite[Ag9CuS4][(Ag,Cu)6(As,Sb)2S7]Trig. 3m (3 2/m) : P3m1
5.2.6Pearceite-T2acTrig. 3 2 : P3 2 1
5.2.7ArgentotennantiteAg6[Cu4(Fe,Zn)2]As4S13Iso. 4 3m : I4 3m
5.2.8MiargyriteAgSbS2Mon. 2/m : B2/b
5.2.10PyrostilpniteAg3SbS3Mon.
5.2.11StephaniteAg5SbS4Orth. mm2 : Cmc21
5.2.12Polybasite[(Ag,Cu)6(Sb,As)2S7][Ag9CuS4]Mon. 2/m : B2/m
5.2.13BillingsleyiteAg7AsS6Iso. 2 3 : P21 3
5.2.14Polybasite-TacTrig. 3m (3 2/m) : P3m1
5.2.15FreibergiteAg6[Cu4Fe2]Sb4S13-xIso. 4 3m : I4 3m
5.2.16AramayoiteAg3Sb2(Bi,Sb)S6Tric. 1 : P1
5.2.17MatilditeAgBiS2Hex.
5.2.18SchapbachiteAg0.4Pb0.2Bi0.4SIso.
5.2.19PavoniteAgBi3S5Mon. 2/m : B2/m
5.2.20ArcubisiteAg6CuBiS4
5.2.21BohdanowicziteAgBiSe2Trig. 3m (3 2/m) : P3m1
5.2.22SelenostephaniteAg5Sb(Se,S)4Orth.
5.2.23Benleonardite[Ag6(Sb,As)2S6Te] [Ag9Cu(S,Te)2Te2]Trig. 3m (3 2/m) : P3m1
5.2.24VolynskiteAgBiTe2Orth.

Other InformationHide

Health Risks:
No information on health risks for this material has been entered into the database. You should always treat mineral specimens with care.

References for PyrargyriteHide

Reference List:
Sort by Year (asc) | by Year (desc) | by Author (A-Z) | by Author (Z-A)
Palache, Charles, Harry Berman & Clifford Frondel (1944) The System of Mineralogy of James Dwight Dana and Edward Salisbury Dana Yale University 1837-1892, Volume I: Elements, Sulfides, Sulfosalts, Oxides. John Wiley and Sons, Inc., New York. 7th edition, revised and enlarged: 362-366.
Neues Jahrbuch für Mineralogie, Monatshefte (1966) 181-184.
Anthony, J.W., Bideaux, R.A., Bladh, K.W., and Nichols, M.C. (1990) Handbook of Mineralogy, Volume I. Elements, Sulfides, Sulfosalts. Mineral Data Publishing, Tucson, AZ, 588pp.: 425.
Harlov, D.E. (1999) Thermochemistry of Ag-Cu exchange equilibria between proustite, sinnerite, and pearceite; constraints on Ag-Cu and As-Sb mixing in pyrargyrite-proustite. European Journal of Mineralogy, 11, 709-719.
Laufek, F.; Sejkora, J.; Dušek, M. (2010) The role of silver in the crystal structure of pyrargyrite: single crystal X-ray diffraction study. Journal of Geosciences, 55, 161-167.

Internet Links for PyrargyriteHide

Localities for PyrargyriteHide

This map shows a selection of localities that have latitude and longitude coordinates recorded. Click on the symbol to view information about a locality. The symbol next to localities in the list can be used to jump to that position on the map.

Locality ListShow

Mineral and/or Locality  
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