Image: <a href="//commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Archaeodontosaurus" title="User:Archaeodontosaurus">Didier Descouens</a> (CC BY-SA 4.0)
tetragonaluncommonMolybdates
Wulfenite
PbMoO4
This image displays bright yellow to orange, thin, tabular, square-shaped crystals of wulfenite, often forming aggregates or individual crystals on a matrix. The crystals exhibit a distinct resinous to adamantine luster.
Wulfenite Physical Properties
Mohs Hardness
2.5Crystal System
tetragonalLuster
resinousStreak Color
whiteCleavage
distinct on {011}, indistinct on {001}Fracture
conchoidalSpecific Gravity
6.5Colors
yellow, orange, red, brown, gray, whiteTransparency
transparentType Locality
Carnoulès Mine, Saint-Sébastien-d'Aigrefeuille, Gard, FranceMineral Group
MolybdatesUses
collector, minor ore of molybdenum, minor ore of leadAssociated Minerals
cerussite, anglesite, mimetite, vanadinite, pyromorphite, limoniteRarity
uncommonGeological Context
Wulfenite is a secondary mineral typically found in the oxidized zones of lead-zinc deposits, where lead-bearing solutions react with molybdenum-bearing solutions. It forms under arid or semi-arid conditions.
