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Download hereGENERAL DESCRIPTION
Meneghinite is a copper and lead sulfo-antimonure. This mineral is formed by hydrothermalism, within "polymetallic" lead-antimony deposits.
Meneghinite is often presented as fibrous mass. The crystals as prismatic, lengthened and striated. Meneghinite is opaque, lead gray to black and with a metallic lustre. Meneghinite is often associated to galena, chalcopyrite and albite.
Meneghinite deposits are not very numerous. One can report, for example, the deposit of Bottino in Italy, the Mount Isa in Australia, the Cassandra mine in Greece, the Dodo mine in Russia and the Hope mine in Idaho in the USA.
In France, there are also some localities where meneghinite is present: Bournac (Hérault), Chessy (Rhône), Huelgoat and Bodennec (Finistère), Langeac-Marsanges (Haute-Loire) and Vialolle (Puy de Dôme), the massifs of Grand-Arc and Lauzière (Savoy), near Isola (Alpes-Maritimes) or Silberwald (near Munster, Vosges; Haut-Rhin).
The place of conservation of the type of this species (extracted with the mine from Bottino, Stazzema, province of Lucca, Tuscany, Italy) is not known.
Did you know? The lead sulfo-antimonide family of minerals is characterized by an important number of minerals species, including meneghinite that are otfen intimately associated. Sometimes, those species are so close to each other that their precise identification thanks to chemical or x-ray methods- is an hard challenge.
HISTORY : Species dedicated to Giuseppe Meneghini (1811-1889), Italian naturalist and geologist who first mentionned this mineral
Species described in 1852 by Emilio Bechi (1822-?), Italian professor of chemistry
Type-locality : Mine Bottino, Toscane, Italy
CHEMICAL FORMULA : Pb13 Cu Sb7 S24
CRYSTAL SYSTEM : Orthorhombic
COLOR : Gris de plomb, noir
DIAPHANIETY : Opaque
LUSTER : Metallic
STREAK : Bright black
MORPHOLOGIE : Primsatic crystals, radial. Massive, fibreous to compact
HARDNESS : 2,5
CHEMICAL CLASS: 6,35
DENSITY : II - Sulfures, sulfosels
GROUP : Meneghinite
STRUNZ CLASS BEFORE 2001 : 2/E.15-40
STRUNZ CLASS AFTER 2001 : 2.HB.05
