|
Click on a
letter above to view the list of gems. |
|
|
| Chemistry:
Mg6Cr2(OH)16(CO3)·4(H2O) | Discovered
in 1910;
IMA
status: Valid (pre-IMA; Grandfathered). Named after Robert Stich, General Manager of the Mount Lyell Mining and Railway
Company, Dundas, Tasmania. |
|
Classification
|
|
|
Mineral
Classification: |
Carbonates
|
Strunz 8th
Ed. ID:
|
5/E.03-20 |
|
5 : Nitrates, Carbonates & Borates E : Water-bearing
carbonates with unfamiliar anions 03 : Hydrotalcite group
|
|
|
Crystal
Data
|
|
|
Crystallography:
|
Trigonal
- Hexagonal Scalenohedral |
Crystal
Habit:
|
As
aggregates of fibers or plates, commonly matted, contorted;
as cross-fiber veinlets and micaceous scales.
|
|
|
Physical
Properties
|
|
|
Cleavage: |
[0001]
Perfect
|
Fracture: |
Uneven
|
Tenacity:
|
Laminae
flexible, not elastic; greasy feel
|
Moh's
Hardness: |
1.5
- 2.0
|
Density:
|
2.16 - 2.20 (g/cm3) |
Radioactivity:
|
Not
Radioactive
|
|
|
Optical
Properties
|
|
|
Color: |
Lilac
to Rose pink |
Transparency: |
Opaque
|
Luster: |
Pearly,
Waxy, Resinous, (greasy feel) |
Refractive
Index: |
1.516
- 1.542 Uniaxial ( + ) |
Birefringence: |
0.0260
|
Dispersion: |
n/a
|
Pleochroism: |
Weak;
O = dark rose-pink to lilac; E = light rose-pink to
lilac
|
|
|
Occurances
|
|
|
Geological
Setting: |
An
alteration product of chromite in serpentinite. |
Type
Locality: |
Stichtite Hill, Dundas mineral field, Zeehan District,
Tasmania, Australia |
Year
Discovered: |
1910 |
View
mineral photos: |
Stichtite
Mineral Photos and Locations |
|
|
More
Information
|
|
|
|
Mindat.org Webmineral.com |
|
|
Stichtite
is a beautiful cabochon type gem. Massive material is
occassionally cut as cabochons but more often carved
and polished as decorative items such as bookends, etc.
The color is usually lilac to pink or even purple and
sometimes veined with green serpentine or other contrasting
minerals. This color combination is very attractive.
Main sources are Black Lake, Quebec, Canada; Dundas,
Tasmania, Australia; Urals Region, Russia; Limpopo and
Mpumalanga Provinces,
South Africa.
|
We
have not photographed our Stichtite
gems yet, please check back soon.
|
|