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Name Origin | After the Austrian mineralogist, Franz Xavier Wulfen |
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Chemical Formula | PbMoO4 |
Color | Orange (various shades) yellow, brownish yellow, yellow-orange, red, brown, yellowish gray, tan, greenish brown |
Hardness | 2.5 - 3 on Mohs Scale |
Crystal System | Tetragonal. Crystals commonly tabular with square outline; also pyramidal; massive, granular. |
Cleavage | Distinct 1 direction. Fracture uneven to subconchoidal. Brittle. |
Specific Gravity (SG) | 6.5 - 7 |
Pleochroism | Weak, in orange to yellow tints |
Luster | Resinous to adamantine |
Stone sizes |
Most wulfenite crystals, especially those from U.S. localities, are too thin for cutting of gemstones. However, an occasional crystal is both thick and transparent enough for faceting. Tsumeb, Namibia, has produced wulfenite crystals several inches across, from which gems up to 50 carats have been faceted. |
Luminescence |
None |
Note: Specimens of wulfenite are magnificent and are greatly prized by collectors. The crystal habit is tabular and the individual crystals are usually very thin, making it difficult to find a suitable cutting fragment. Gems are then difficult to cut because of the softness of the material and its sensitivity to heat and vibration. These characteristics make wulfenite totally unsuited for jewelry, but it makes a spectacular collector gem of great rarity. The red wulfenite is one of the richest colors in nature.
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Actinolite
Adamite
Azurite
Brucite
Canasite
Coral
Diopside
Hambergite
Jeremejevite
References:
1- Color Encyclopedia of Gemstones, Joel E. Arem, VNR publications, New York.
Photo credit:
1- Color Encyclopedia of Gemstones, Joel E. Arem, VNR publications, New York.
Photo credit: