Cinnabar

Mercury sulfide and the main ore of mercury: bright scarlet, soft and very heavy. Toxic — handle with care.

Cinnabar specimen — Photo: H. Zell, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

How to identify cinnabar

Bright scarlet red with a scarlet streak.
Very heavy.
Soft — a fingernail or coin scratches it.
Often coats white quartz or dolomite.

Often confused with

Hematite
Hematite is much harder and leaves a duller red-brown streak.
Compare side by side

Where it's found

Almadén, Spain
Guizhou, China
New Almaden, California

Uses

Mercury ore and the historic pigment vermilion.

Rock tumbling

Not suitable for tumbling. Toxic. Wash hands after handling.

Did you know?

Chinese carved red lacquerware got its color from ground cinnabar.

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