Austinite Crystal Mineral Specimen

AUSTINITE

HISTORY, NAME, LOCALITIES: Austinite, pronounced AUSS-tin-ite, was recognized as a mineral species after its discovery in Utah in 1935.  It is named for American mineralogist Austin Flint Rogers (1877-1957).  Austinite is rare mineral that occurs in Mexico, Germany, Morocco, Namibia, Chile, Greece, and the United States (Arizona, California, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah).

MINERALOGY, PROPERTIES, OCCURRENCE: Austinite [basic calcium zinc arsenate, Ca,Zn(AsO₄)(OH)] crystallizes in the orthorhombic system as yellowish-white-to-bright-green, transparent-to-translucent, thin, elongated prisms or radial, fibrous aggregates and nodules.  It has a Mohs hardness of 4.0-4.5, good cleavage in one direction, a greasy-to-silky luster, and a specific gravity of 4.1.  Austinite is a secondary mineral that forms in the oxidation zones of zinc-rich, base-metal deposits, often through colloidal precipitation in veins and small cavities and usually in association with hematite and adamite.

METAPHYSICAL PROPERTIES, LORE, USES: Austinite has no jewelry or technological uses.  It has in the past occasionally served as a minor ore of zinc.  According to metaphysical practitioners, austenite promotes courage and daring, encourages new beginnings and adventures, and protects those who are young, free, and willing to take chances.

COLLECTORS’ INFORMATION: Austinite is collected for its unusual chemistry, rarity, yellowish-white-to-bright-green colors, occurrence as radial nodules, and association in composite specimens with such minerals as adamite.