Mineral Mondays!

Gaspeite:

This rare stone takes its beautiful green hues from its Nickel content, it's naturally vibrant green is one of my favorites. It is only found in very few localities with the largest one in Western Australia. This location has long since been worked out, and the only Gaspeite available on the market now comes from small supplies collected many years ago.

Another stone similar in colour to Gaspeite is Mojave (Mohave) Turquoise, which is often marketed as being Gaspeite.

Formula:	(Ni,Mg,Fe)CO 3
System:	Hexagonal	Colour:	Light green
Hardness:	4½ - 5
Member of:	Calcite Group
Name:	After the type locality: Gaspé Peninsula, Lemieux Township, Gaspé-Ouest Co., Québec, Canada

Type Occurrence of Gaspéite:

Type Locality: New Jersey Zinc Exploration Co. roadcut, Mont-Albert, La Haute-Gaspésie RCM, Gaspésie-Îles-de-la-Madeleine, Québec, Canada

General Appearance of Type Material: Light green rhombohedral crystals, Spinel, Serpentine Group, Magnesite, Dolomite Annabergite

Associated Minerals at type locality:

Physical Properties of Gaspéite

Lustre: Vitreous, Dull

Colour: Light green

Streak: Green, yellow

Hardness (Mohs): 4½ - 5

Cleavage: Distinct/Good, Good {1011}

Fracture: Irregular/Uneven

Density (measured): 3.71(1) g/cm3

Density (calculated): 3.748 g/cm3

Crystallography of Gaspéite

Crystal System: Hexagonal

Cell Parameters: a = 4.621Å, c = 14.93Å

Ratio: a:c = 1 : 3.231

Unit Cell Volume: V 276.10 ų (Calculated from Unit Cell)

Kisses,

K

(Images and info via Cactus and Coyote, Entia Jewelry, Wikipedia, CMU, Mineral Atlas, Mindat)