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Mineralpedia Details for Esperite

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Esperite

Esperite

Professor Esper Signius Larsen Jr., former American petrologist and mineralogist at Harvard University in Massachusetts, USA, is the namesake of the mineral Esperite. Esperite is a rare mineral that occurs at its type locality in the Parker shaft of the Franklin mine in New Jersey, USA and at El Dragon mine in Potosi, Bolivia. At the type locality it occurs within the metamorphosed stratiform zinc orebody. Esperite has a bright yellow fluorescence under short-wave ultraviolet light and has a kelly green cathodoluminescence.

Ref. Handbook of Mineralogy, Anthony et al (1995) and MSA at http://www.handbookofmineralogy.org/pdfs/esperite.pdf

Formula
PbCa2(ZnSiO4)3 
Crystal System
Monoclinic 
Crystal Habit
Massive 
Cleavage
Indistinct, None, None 
Luster
Vitreous (Glassy) 
Color
white 
Streak
white 
Class
Monoclinic - Prismatic 
Fracture
Brittle 
Hardness
WebMineral
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Mindat
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Esperite from Franklin, Sussex Co., New Jersey, United States

Esperite
            from Franklin, Sussex Co., New Jersey, United States

White-grey compact crystalline masses in Franklinite matrix with Zincite (orange) and Willemite (grey) - all are massive. Esperite is distinguished from the Willemite by fluorescing bright yellow. 1cm.

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