Rocksday

Pyromorphite

A lead phosphate forming bright green hexagonal barrels.

Pyromorphite specimen
Photo: Ivar Leidus, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

How to identify pyromorphite

  • Grass-green to olive hexagonal prisms, often hollow-ended.
  • Very heavy.
  • Resinous luster.

Often confused with

Where it's found

  • Bunker Hill mine, Idaho
  • Les Farges, France
  • Daoping, Guangxi, China

Uses

Collector specimens; minor lead ore.

Rock tumbling

Not suitable for tumbling. Contains lead.

Did you know?

Its name means 'fire form' — a melted bead re-forms crystals as it cools.

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