Cetineite

Description

Cetineite has a hardness of 3½ and a specific gravity of 4.21. Named by C. Sabelli, G. Vezzalini in 1987 after the type locality of Le Cetine di Cotorniano Mine, Italy. In addition to Cetineite, that mine produced 83 other minerals and 4 other minerals which call that Mine their TL – all of which look very similar to some of the nooks and crannies you’ll see on this rock….

It might be possible that in addition to Cetineite, you just may be looking at a mixture of Brizziite, Gibbsite, Mopungite, Rosenburgite, Onoratorite, Rostite, Metavoltine, Coquandite, Jurbanite, Valentinite, Peretaite, Löweite, Rosiaite, Cervanite, Tamarugite, Fibroferrite, Elpasolite, Hydrokenoralstonite, Römerite, Rozenite, Senarmontite, Stibnite, Stibiconite, Gypsum, Calcite, Sulfur, Pickeringite, Sideronatrite, Alunogen, Melanterite, Millerite, and/or Marcasite, in addition to who knows how many other possible minerals… at least, judging based on the photos of the minerals from that mine, and the curious spots all over this rock!

At 60% Antimony, 12% Oxygen and 12% Sulfur, 10% Potassium, 5% Sodium, and 1% Hydrogen, this makes for one cool, small sample of those elements for element collectors! However, with Antimony, it’s probably not a mineral you should bring home and add to your collection unless you really want it and can keep it safely. It’s not really a showpiece, anyway…

Known to only be found in six localities worldwide, five of which are in Italy and the sixth being in Luxembourg, it may not be very likely you’ll stumble into a mineral like this, but perhaps this may actually reside in Colorado as well and just has yet to be identified? After all, there are around 45 minerals which can be found in Colorado that contain significant amounts of Antimony, in addition to Native Antimony…

Regardless of where you may be hiking in the world, if you find yourself near “an antimony deposit in highly silicified evaporites, on ore which has been roasted, then long weathered” you might just find yourself stumbling into this mineral!