Claudetite, Freiberg Smelter, Germany
Mineral Matters #374
Work on the next issue of the Monthly Mineral Chronicles is well under way. One of the recurring segments is “Minerals and Elements” where I look at each element in turn on the Periodic Table, and some of the minerals that contain that element. Next month is the element arsenic, element number 33.
According to Mindat, One of 45 or so arsenic-bearing oxides is claudetite, formula As2O3. Claudetite is named in honour of Frederic Just Claudet (1826-1906), a French chemist who first described the natural material.
It is not a particularly common mineral, recorded in 22 countries in Mindat, with the São Domingos Mine, Corte do Pinto, Mértola, Beja, Portugal being the Type Locality.
I have three specimens in my collection. Two of them are pretty nondescript, being from Wet Swine Gill in the Caldbeck Fells, Cumbria, England, and the third being from a slag locality in Germany. The latter one is much nicer!
Below: Claudetite with sulphur, Saxonia dump slag locality, Freiberg smelter, Freiberg, Mittelsachsen, Saxony, Germany. Width of view 3mm. Click on the image for a higher resolution version.
Ah, but I bet Wet Swine Gill is the lovelier locality. Bill.