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Weishanite

A valid IMA mineral species

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Photos of Weishanite (7)

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Weishanite

Keystone Mine, Magnolia Mining District, Boulder County, Colorado, USA

Weishanite

Keystone Mine, Magnolia Mining District, Boulder County, Colorado, USA

Weishanite

Keystone Mine, Magnolia Mining District, Boulder County, Colorado, USA

Weishanite

Keystone Mine, Magnolia Mining District, Boulder County, Colorado, USA

Weishanite

Keystone Mine, Magnolia Mining District, Boulder County, Colorado, USA

Weishanite

Keystone Mine, Magnolia Mining District, Boulder County, Colorado, USA

Weishanite

Keystone Mine, Magnolia Mining District, Boulder County, Colorado, USA

Weishanite

Keystone Mine, Magnolia Mining District, Boulder County, Colorado, USA

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About WeishaniteHide

Formula:

(Au,Ag,Hg)

Originally assumed to be (Au,Ag)₃Hg₂.

Colour:

Light yellow

Lustre:

Metallic

Hardness:

2½

Specific Gravity:

18.17 (Calculated)

Crystal System:

Hexagonal

Name:

For the type locality in the Weishancheng ore field, Tongbai Co., Henan Province, China.

Type Locality:

ⓘ Poshan Mine, Weishancheng ore field, Tongbai County, Nanyang, Henan, China

A gold amalgam. Compare Unnamed (Ag-Au Amalgam), Unnamed (Ag-Au Amalgam II), UM1981-04-E:AgAuHg.

Unique IdentifiersHide

Mindat ID:

4261

Long-form identifier:

mindat:1:1:4261:7

GUID
(UUID V4):

73d76981-13e2-42c3-9793-ba2e9580550d

IMA Classification of WeishaniteHide

IMA status:

Approved

Approval year:

1982

First published:

1984

Type description reference:

Li Yuheng, Ouyang Shan, and Tian Peixue (1984): Weishanite - A new gold-bearing mineral. Acta Mineralogica Sinica 4(2), 102-105 (in Chinese with English abstract).

Classification of WeishaniteHide

Strunz-mindat (2024):

1.AD.20a

1 : ELEMENTS (Metals and intermetallic alloys; metalloids and nonmetals; carbides, silicides, nitrides, phosphides)
A : Metals and Intermetallic Alloys
D : Mercury-amalgam family

Dana 7th ed.:

1.1.12.3

Dana 8th ed.:

1.1.8.6

1 : NATIVE ELEMENTS AND ALLOYS
1 : Metals, other than the Platinum Group

Hey's CIM Ref.:

1.19

1 : Elements and Alloys (including the arsenides, antimonides and bismuthides of Cu, Ag and Au)

Mineral SymbolsHide

As of 2021 there are now IMA–CNMNC approved mineral symbols (abbreviations) for each mineral species, useful for tables and diagrams.

Symbol	Source	Reference
Whn	IMA–CNMNC	Warr, L.N. (2021). IMA–CNMNC approved mineral symbols. Mineralogical Magazine, 85(3), 291-320. doi:10.1180/mgm.2021.43

Physical Properties of WeishaniteHide

Lustre:

Metallic

Transparency:

Opaque

Colour:

Light yellow

Streak:

Light yellow

Hardness:

2½ on Mohs scale

Hardness:

VHN₁₀₀=50.5 - Vickers

Tenacity:

Malleable

Density:

18.17 g/cm³ (Calculated)

Optical Data of WeishaniteHide

Anisotropism:

Weak

Reflectivity:

Wavelength	R
480nm	63.75%
530nm	75.5%
590nm	81.03%
660nm	68.6%

Graph shows reflectance levels at different wavelengths (in nm). Top of box is 100%. Peak reflectance is 81.03%.

Pleochroism:

Weak

Chemistry of WeishaniteHide

Mindat Formula:

(Au,Ag,Hg)

Originally assumed to be (Au,Ag)₃Hg₂.

Elements listed:

Ag, Au, Hg - search for minerals with similar chemistry

Crystallography of WeishaniteHide

Crystal System:

Hexagonal

Class (H-M):

6/mmm (6/m 2/m 2/m) - Dihexagonal Dipyramidal

Space Group:

P6₃/mmc

Cell Parameters:

a = 2.9348(8) Å, c = 4.8215(18) Å

Ratio:

a:c = 1 : 1.643

Unit Cell V:

35.96 Å³ (Calculated from Unit Cell)

Morphology:

Grains to 30 microns. Tiny prismatic crystals.

Comment:

Bindi et al. (2018). Type material has a = 2.9265, c = 4.8178 Å.

Crystal StructureHide

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Data courtesy of the American Mineralogist Crystal Structure Database. Click on an AMCSD ID to view structure

ID	Species	Reference	Link	Year	Locality	Pressure (GPa)	Temp (K)
0014132	Weishanite	Rolfe C, Hume-Rothery W (1967) The constitution of alloys of gold and mercury Journal of the Less-Common Metals 13 1-10		1967		0	293

CIF Raw Data - click here to close

data_global
_chemical_name_mineral 'Weishanite'
loop_
_publ_author_name
'Rolfe C'
'Hume-Rothery W'
_journal_name_full 'Journal of the Less-Common Metals'
_journal_volume 13 
_journal_year 1967
_journal_page_first 1
_journal_page_last 10
_publ_section_title
;
 The constitution of alloys of gold and mercury
;
_database_code_amcsd 0014132
_chemical_formula_sum '(Au.75 Hg.25)'
_cell_length_a 2.9180
_cell_length_b 2.9180
_cell_length_c 4.8113
_cell_angle_alpha 90
_cell_angle_beta 90
_cell_angle_gamma 120
_cell_volume 35.478
_exptl_crystal_density_diffrn     18.523
_symmetry_space_group_name_H-M 'P 63/m m c'
loop_
_space_group_symop_operation_xyz
  'x,y,z'
  '-x,-x+y,1/2+z'
  'x,x-y,1/2-z'
  '-x+y,-x,1/2-z'
  'x-y,x,1/2+z'
  '-y,-x,z'
  'y,x,-z'
  'y,-x+y,-z'
  '-y,x-y,z'
  'x-y,-y,1/2+z'
  '-x+y,y,1/2-z'
  'x,y,1/2-z'
  '-x,-y,1/2+z'
  'x,x-y,z'
  '-x,-x+y,-z'
  'x-y,x,-z'
  '-x+y,-x,z'
  'y,x,1/2+z'
  '-y,-x,1/2-z'
  '-y,x-y,1/2-z'
  'y,-x+y,1/2+z'
  '-x+y,y,z'
  'x-y,-y,-z'
  '-x,-y,-z'
loop_
_atom_site_label
_atom_site_fract_x
_atom_site_fract_y
_atom_site_fract_z
_atom_site_occupancy
Au   0.33333   0.66667   0.25000   0.75000
Hg   0.33333   0.66667   0.25000   0.25000

X-Ray Powder DiffractionHide

Powder Diffraction Data:

d-spacing	Intensity
2.243 Å	(100)
0.9396 Å	(90)
1.3593 Å	(80)
1.2509 Å	(80)
0.9954 Å	(70)
1.4609 Å	(60)
1.2255 Å	(60)

Geological EnvironmentHide

Paragenetic Mode(s):

Paragenetic Mode	Earliest Age (Ga)
High-𝑇 alteration and/or metamorphism
33 : Minerals deposited by hydrothermal metal-rich fluids (see also [#12])

Type Occurrence of WeishaniteHide

Type Locality:

ⓘ Poshan Mine, Weishancheng ore field, Tongbai County, Nanyang, Henan, China

Place of Conservation of Type Material:

National Geological Museum, Beijing.

Geological Setting of Type Material:

Silicified zone of a gold-silver deposit in biotite granulite.

Associated Minerals at Type Locality:

Sphalerite	Silver	Scheelite	Pyrrhotite	Pyrite
Gold	Galena	Acanthite

Reference:

Li Yuheng, Ouyang Shan, and Tian Peixue (1984): Weishanite - A new gold-bearing mineral. Acta Mineralogica Sinica 4(2), 102-105 (in Chinese with English abstract).

Synonyms of WeishaniteHide

IMA1982-076

Gold Amalgam (in part)

Other Language Names for WeishaniteHide

German:Weishanit

Simplified Chinese:围山矿

Spanish:Weishanita

Common AssociatesHide

Associated Minerals Based on Photo Data:

1 photo of Weishanite associated with Goethite	α-Fe³⁺O(OH)
1 photo of Weishanite associated with Quartz	SiO₂

Related Minerals - Strunz-mindat Grouping Hide

1.AD.	Aurihydrargyrumite	Au₆Hg₅	Hex. 6/mmm (6/m 2/m 2/m) : P6₃/mcm
1.AD.05	Mercury	Hg	Trig. 3m (3 2/m) : R3m
1.AD.10	Belendorffite	Cu₇Hg₆	Trig. 3m : R3m
1.AD.10	Kolymite	Cu₇Hg₆	Iso.
1.AD.15c	Eugenite	Ag₁₁Hg₂	Iso. 4 3m : I4 3m
1.AD.15b	Luanheite	Ag₃Hg	Hex.
1.AD.15d	Moschellandsbergite	Ag₂Hg₃	Iso. m3m (4/m 3 2/m)
1.AD.15a	Paraschachnerite	Ag₃Hg₂	Orth.
1.AD.15a	Schachnerite	Ag_1.1Hg_0.9	Hex. 6/mmm (6/m 2/m 2/m) : P6₃/mmc
1.AD.20b	Goldamalgam (of Chen et al.)	(Au,Ag)Hg	Iso. m3m (4/m 3 2/m) : Im3m
1.AD.20c	Yiyangite	Au₃Hg	Hex.
1.AD.25	Potarite	PdHg	Tet. 4/mmm (4/m 2/m 2/m) : P4/mmm
1.AD.30	Leadamalgam	Pb_0.7Hg_0.3	Tet. 4/mmm (4/m 2/m 2/m) : I4/mmm
1.AD.35	Shosanbetsuite	Ag₃Sn	Orth. mmm (2/m 2/m 2/m) : Pmmn
1.AD.40	Unnamed (Au2Hg)	Au₂Hg	Hex. 6/mmm (6/m 2/m 2/m) : P6₃/mcm

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.

Internet Links for WeishaniteHide

mindat.org URL:

https://www.mindat.org/min-4261.html
Please feel free to link to this page.

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External Links:

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Look for Weishanite on Wikipedia

Look for Weishanite on Mineralien Atlas

Raman and XRD data at RRUFF project

References and PDF downloads at RRUFF project

American Mineralogist Crystal Structure Database

Handbook of Mineralogy page PDF

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References for WeishaniteHide

Reference List:

Birch, W.D. & Ma, C. (2023): Complexity in the Au–Ag–Hg system: New information from a PGE (‘osmiridium’) concentrate at Waratah Bay, Victoria, Australia. Mineralogical Magazine, 87, (in press).

http://forum.amiminerals.it/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=19137

Li Yuheng, Ouyang Shan, and Tian Peixue (1984): Weishanite - A new gold-bearing mineral. Acta Mineralogica Sinica 4(2), 102-105 (in Chinese with English abstract). - American Mineralogist (1988), 73, 196 (abstract).

Li Yuheng, Ouyang Shan, and Tian Peixue (1984): Weishanite - A new gold-bearing mineral. Acta Mineralogica Sinica 4(2), 102-105 (in Chinese with English abstract).

American Mineralogist (1989), 74, 504.

Shaofeng Huang (2011): Mineralogical characteristics of gold-mercury minerals in the Davao gold placer of Mindanao islands, Phillippines, and its prospecting significance. Geology and Exploration 47(5), 935-942 (in Chinese with English abstract).

Bindi, L., Keutsch, F.N., Lepore, G.O. (2018): Structural and chemical study of weishanite, (Au,Ag,Hg), from the Keystone mine, Colorado, USA. Mineralogical Magazine 82, 1141-1145.

(2023) Weishanite. Handbook of Mineralogy. Mineralogical Society of America

Localities for WeishaniteHide

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 ListHide

- This locality has map coordinates listed.

- This locality has estimated coordinates. ⓘ - Click for references and further information on this occurrence. ? - Indicates mineral may be doubtful at this locality.

- Good crystals or important locality for species.

- World class for species or very significant. (TL) - Type Locality for a valid mineral species. (FRL) - First Recorded Locality for everything else (eg varieties). ~~Struck out~~ - Mineral was erroneously reported from this locality. Faded * - Never found at this locality but inferred to have existed at some point in the past (e.g. from pseudomorphs).

All localities listed without proper references should be considered as questionable.


Australia
Victoria South Gippsland Shire ⓘ Waratah Bay	Birch et al. (2023)

Brazil
Minas Gerais Mariana ⓘ Padre Viegas district	extraLapis #2 (1992)

China (TL)
Henan Nanyang Tongbai County Weishancheng ore field ⓘ Poshan Mine (TL)	Yuheng Li et al. (1984)

Switzerland
Fribourg Sarine ⓘ Granges-Paccot	Meisser et al. (2000)

USA
Colorado Boulder County Magnolia Mining District ⓘ Keystone Mine	EDS analysed by J.Desor 2016_11_28 +1 other reference

Weishanite

About WeishaniteHide

Unique IdentifiersHide

IMA Classification of WeishaniteHide

Classification of WeishaniteHide

Mineral SymbolsHide

Physical Properties of WeishaniteHide

Optical Data of WeishaniteHide

Chemistry of WeishaniteHide

Crystallography of WeishaniteHide

Crystal StructureHide

X-Ray Powder DiffractionHide

Geological EnvironmentHide

Type Occurrence of WeishaniteHide

Synonyms of WeishaniteHide

Other Language Names for WeishaniteHide

Common AssociatesHide

Related Minerals - Strunz-mindat GroupingHide

Other InformationHide

Internet Links for WeishaniteHide

References for WeishaniteHide

Localities for WeishaniteHide

Locality ListHide

Related Minerals - Strunz-mindat Grouping Hide