Bismuthinite
Bismuthinite is a sulfide mineral known for its striking metallic crystals, with known Chinese sources.
About Bismuthiniteextended article
Bismuthinite — bismuth's metallic needles
Bismuthinite is bismuth sulfide, the bismuth analog of stibnite — the two share the same orthorhombic structure type and the same taste for elongated, metallic lead-grey crystals. It is soft (hardness 2), heavy, and often carries a faint yellow-to-iridescent tarnish on older surfaces.
Our material
Our specimens are acicular sprays from Inner Mongolia, China — fine needle clusters in the habit the species shares with its more famous antimony cousin.
Collector notes
Like stibnite, bismuthinite is fragile and soft enough to mark with a fingernail: handle by the matrix and keep it where nothing brushes the needles. See the stibnite guide for the structural sibling, or the Inner Mongolia locality page for companion material.
About Bismuthinite
Bismuthinite belongs to the sulfide class in the stibnite group and has the chemical formula Bi2S3. It crystallizes in the orthorhombic system and is relatively soft, requiring careful handling.
Identification & care
Bismuthinite typically forms prismatic, acicular crystals; striated along length; massive; lamellar; bladed. Its color is typically lead gray, tin-white and yellowish or iridescent on tarnished surfaces. The luster is metallic, splendent, the streak is lead gray, and specimens are typically opaque. The cleavage is perfect on {010}. The fracture is uneven, which aids identification.
Collector context
Collector notes
Bismuthinite is valued by collectors for its distinctive metallic presentation. Bismuthinite has known Chinese occurrences in Guizhou.
