Image: <bdi><a href="https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q56247090" class="extiw" title="d:Q56247090"><span title="mineral collector and dealer">Robert M. Lavinsky</span></a></bdi> (CC BY-SA 3.0)
monoclinicuncommonTellurides
Calaverite
AuTe2
This specimen features silvery-white to brassy-yellow metallic crystals of calaverite, exhibiting a somewhat elongated or bladed habit, possibly with striations on crystal faces.
Calaverite Physical Properties
Mohs Hardness
2.5Crystal System
monoclinicLuster
metallicStreak Color
greenish-gray to yellowish-grayCleavage
distinct on {201}, poor on {110} and {001}Fracture
uneven to subconchoidalSpecific Gravity
9.1Colors
silvery-white, brassy-yellowTransparency
opaqueType Locality
Cresson Mine, Eclipse Gulch, Cripple Creek District, Teller County, Colorado, USAMineral Group
TelluridesUses
gold ore, collectorAssociated Minerals
gold, sylvanite, krennerite, petzite, pyrite, quartzRarity
uncommonGeological Context
Calaverite is a gold telluride mineral that forms in low-temperature hydrothermal veins, typically found in epithermal gold deposits where it serves as an important ore mineral for gold.
