BIXBITE

HISTORY, NAME, LOCALITIES: Bixbite, pronounced BIX-bee-ite, was recognized as a mineral species in 1897 after a study of specimens that were collected in the Thomas Range of Utah.  It is named in honor of the American prospector and author Maynard Bixby (1853-1935).  Notable sources are located in Austria, Australia, China, Germany, India, Mexico, Namibia, South Africa, Sweden, and the United States (Utah, Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico).

MINERALOGY, PROPERTIES, OCCURRENCE: Bixbite [manganese iron oxide, (Mn,Fe)2O3] is a rare mineral that crystallizes in the isometric system as small, well-developed cubes that are striated and often deeply pitted; it also occurs in granular and massive forms.  It is opaque and black in color and has a bright, metallic-to-submetallic luster.  Bixbite has a Mohs hardness of 6.0-6.5, a specific gravity of 4.9, an irregular fracture, and poor cleavage in one direction.  It occurs in hydro-thermal and metamorphic environments, but most notably in rhyolitic cavities in association with such minerals as topaz, hematite, red beryl, and spessartine.

METAPHYSICAL PROPERTIES, LORE, USES:  Because of its rarity, bixbite has no technological or jewelry uses.  Metaphysical practitioners believe that bixbite enables one to teach with integrity and insight, and enhances intuition, sensitivity, imagination, adaptability, and spirituality.

COLLECTORS’ INFORMATION: Bixbite is collected for its rarity, well-developed, cubic crystals, bright, metallic-to-sub-metallic luster, and association with such other minerals as topaz , red beryl, and spessartine.