Provenite

About Vanadinite

Pb₅(VO₄)₃Cl

A lead chlorovanadate best known for bright red to orange hexagonal crystals with a resinous to subadamantine luster; hardness is low and the density very high.

Show 11 localities on the map

Photos of Vanadinite

Single sharp burnt-orange vanadinite crystal from the Old Yuma Mine, Tucson Mountains, Arizona.
Vanadinite · Old Yuma Mine
Single sharp burnt-orange vanadinite crystal from the Old Yuma Mine, Tucson Mountains, Arizona.
Photo: Robert M. Lavinsky · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Source
Red lustrous vanadinite crystals covering matrix, Pure Potential (North Geronimo) Mine, Arizona.
Vanadinite · Pure Potential Mine (North Geronimo Mine)
Red lustrous vanadinite crystals covering matrix, Pure Potential (North Geronimo) Mine, Arizona.
Photo: Robert M. Lavinsky · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Source
Orange-brown barrel-shaped vanadinite crystals on vuggy limonite from the Mammoth-St. Anthony Mine, Arizona.
Vanadinite · Mammoth-Saint Anthony Mine (Tiger)
Orange-brown barrel-shaped vanadinite crystals on vuggy limonite from the Mammoth-St. Anthony Mine, Arizona.
Photo: Robert M. Lavinsky · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Source
Plate covered with tan-gray barrel-shaped, partly hoppered vanadinite crystals from Touissit, Morocco.
Vanadinite · Touissit (Touissit-Bou Beker district)
Plate covered with tan-gray barrel-shaped, partly hoppered vanadinite crystals from Touissit, Morocco.
Photo: Robert M. Lavinsky · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Source
Crust of lustrous honey-brown to chocolate-brown vanadinite prisms from the Erupcion (Ahumada) Mine, Chihuahua, Mexico.
Vanadinite · Los Lamentos Mountains (Ahumada mine area)
Crust of lustrous honey-brown to chocolate-brown vanadinite prisms from the Erupcion (Ahumada) Mine, Chihuahua, Mexico.
Photo: Robert M. Lavinsky · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Source
Bright red vanadinite crystals on bladed barite matrix from Mibladen, Morocco.
Vanadinite · Mibladen Mining District
Bright red vanadinite crystals on bladed barite matrix from Mibladen, Morocco.
Photo: Robert M. Lavinsky · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Source
Vanadinite specimen from the Apache Mine, Gila County, Arizona.
Vanadinite · Apache Mine
Vanadinite specimen from the Apache Mine, Gila County, Arizona.
Photo: Robert M. Lavinsky · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Source

Where Vanadinite is found (11)

Mexico

Morocco

Namibia

United States

Zambia

Vanadinite on the same specimen with other minerals

Same specimen Calcite with Vanadinite at Apache Mine

1 specimen photo(s) from this locality show vanadinite with calcite together. The pairing comes from the photographer's file name and label, so the relationship between the two minerals is not specified.

Same specimen Calcite with Vanadinite at Los Lamentos Mountains (Ahumada mine area)

1 specimen photo(s) from this locality show vanadinite with calcite together. The pairing comes from the photographer's file name and label, so the relationship between the two minerals is not specified.

Same specimen Quartz with Vanadinite at Los Lamentos Mountains (Ahumada mine area)

1 specimen photo(s) from this locality show vanadinite with quartz together. The pairing comes from the photographer's file name and label, so the relationship between the two minerals is not specified.

Identity

Also called
johnstonite; brown lead (historical name)
Group
Apatite Group
Strunz
8.BN.05 · 8 Phosphates, arsenates, vanadates
IMA status
Grandfathered
Name origin
Named for its vanadium content; the mineral was first recognised in Mexico in 1801 by del Rio as 'brown lead', before vanadium was accepted as an element.
Elements
Pb, V, O, Cl

Physical properties

Color
Red-orange, deep red, brownish red, brownish yellow, yellow or pale straw-yellow; may be concentrically zoned
Streak
White to pale red or pale yellow
Luster
Resinous luster
Transparency
Variable
Mohs hardness
2.5–3
Density
6.88–6.95 g/cm³
Cleavage / fracture
No cleavage reported; fracture uneven to conchoidal; brittle
Magnetism / fluorescence
Non-fluorescent

Crystallography

Crystal system
Hexagonal
Space group
P6₃/m
Structure
Apatite-type structure (point group 6/m, Z = 2, a = 10.3174, c = 7.3378), isostructural with pyromorphite and mimetite and forming solid-solution series with both.
Typical habit
Hexagonal prisms (short to long), often cavernous or in parallel groups; also acicular, hairlike or fibrous; rarely rounded or globular
Optical data
Uniaxial (-); omega about 2.416, epsilon about 2.35; absorption E < O

Formation and use

Formation
Secondary mineral of the oxidized zone of lead deposits, typically in arid climates, where vanadium leached from wall-rock silicates combines with lead released from galena; often found with mimetite, pyromorphite, descloizite, mottramite, wulfenite, cerussite and barite.
Uses
Minor ore of vanadium and lead; mainly valued as a collector's specimen for its colour.
Stability and care
Soluble in nitric and hydrochloric acid, so avoid acid cleaning; it is a lead mineral, so handle with care and wash hands after handling.

Related minerals

Related minerals
Mimetitepyromorphiteendlichite (arsenic-bearing vanadinite)descloizitemottramite
Can be confused with
Mimetiteendlichite

Sources

  1. SRC-067 · Book
    Handbook of Mineralogy - VanadiniteAnthony, J.W.; Bideaux, R.A.; Bladh, K.W.; Nichols, M.C. · Mineralogical Society of America
  2. SRC-068 · Database
    Vanadinite (Mindat mineral page, opened via mirror app1.fnc.mindat.org)Mindat.org contributors · Mindat.org / Hudson Institute of Mineralogy
  3. SRC-069 · Database
    Vanadinite Mineral Data (Webmineral)Barthelmy, D. · Webmineral
  4. SRC-070 · Website
    Vanadinite - The Red LeadMineral Expert · mineralexpert.org
  5. SRC-071 · Website
    VanadiniteWikipedia contributors · Wikipedia

Draft data from the Provenite workbook. Check entries against the cited sources before relying on them. Photos are open-licence images from Wikimedia Commons; the author and licence are given with each photo.