Sphalerite
Species
Common · (Zn,Fe)S
Zinc sulfide and the primary ore of zinc. Its name derives from the Greek for treacherous, because miners took it for galena and it yielded no lead. Clear crystals have a dispersion about three times that of diamond, and a fire to match.
Identity
- Formula
- (Zn,Fe)S
- Chemical class
- Sulfide
- Also known as
- Zinc blende, Black jack (dark variety)
- Ore of
- Zinc
Crystallography
- Crystal system
- Cubic
- Habits
- Massive, Granular, Dodecahedral
- Fracture
- Conchoidal
Physical properties
- Mohs hardness
- 3.5
- Density
- 4.1 g/cm³
- Luster
- Resinous, Adamantine
- Colors
- brown, black, yellow, red, orange, colorless
- Streak
- pale yellow to brown
- Transparency
- Transparent, Translucent, Opaque
Geology
- Origins
- Hydrothermal, Sedimentary
- Host rocks
- Limestone and chalk, Sandstone, shale and clay
- Associated minerals
- Galena, Pyrite, Chalcopyrite, Marcasite, Barite, Fluorite
- Found in
- Hydrothermal vein (lode), Volcanogenic massive sulfide deposit
- Geography
- worldwide
Classification
- Rarity
- Common
- Gem quality
- No
Sources
- M. Pasero and others, IMA Commission on New Minerals, Nomenclature and Classification, The New IMA List of Minerals, updated September 2026. International Mineralogical Association (CNMNC), 2026.
- Sphalerite. Mindat.org (Hudson Institute of Mineralogy).
- J. W. Anthony, R. A. Bideaux, K. W. Bladh, M. C. Nichols, Sphalerite. Mineral Data Publishing, Handbook of Mineralogy, 2001.
- Sphalerite. Gemdat.org (Hudson Institute of Mineralogy).
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