Kermesite
- Rotspießglanz
Kermesit, outdated also known as Rotspießglanz, is a rarely occurring mineral from the mineral class of " sulfides and sulfosalts ". It crystallizes in the triclinic crystal system with the composition Sb2S2O, is so chemically seen an oxygen-containing antimony sulfide.
Kermesit is translucent to opaque and developed mostly acicular to fibrous, radial- crystals and mineral aggregates of cherry to purple red color with brownish red line color. The surfaces of the Kermesitkristalle have a strong diamond to metallic luster.
Etymology and history
Was first discovered Kermesit in the pit " New Hope of God" in Bräunsdorf (municipality Oberschona ) in Saxony and described in 1737 by Johann Ernst Hebenstreit, who described the mineral as Stibium rubrum or as Red Spießglaserz.
The French mineralogist and chemist Balthazar Georges Sage (1740-1824) refers to the mineral in 1779 in his notes as mine d' Anti Moine de plumes ( = Kermes mineral natif, German: natural Kermesmineral ). The old alchemical notion Kermes is derived from the Persian word " qurmizq " or from the Arabic " al - qirmiz " and was the name for a red, obtained from insect color. François Sulpice Beudant refers to the mineral in his work of 1832 briefly as Kermes or anti Moine rouge. More narrated from him are synonyms antimony aperture and Red Spiesglanzerz.
His final name Kermesit finally got the mineral in 1843 by Edward John Chapman ( 1821-1904 ).
Classification
In the now-obsolete but still in use classification of minerals according to Strunz ( 8th edition ) of the Kermesit still belonged to the Department of " not metal-like sulfides", where he led the unnamed group II/F.11 formed together with Cetineite, Ottensit and Sarabauit.
The 9th edition valid since 2001 and of the International Mineralogical Association (IMA ) used the Strunz'schen Mineral classification assigns the Kermesit in the newly defined division of " sulfides, arsenides, Alkaide; Sulfides with halides, oxides, hydroxides (H2O) " a. This department is also further divided according to the type of occurring in connection cations and halogens, oxides or hydroxides, so that the mineral is found according to its composition in the subdivision " with O, OH, H2O", where it is the only member the unnamed group 2.FD.05 forms.
The mostly commonly used in English-speaking classification of minerals according to Dana assigns the Kermesit also in the class of sulfides and there in the department of " sulfide minerals ." Here he is the only member of the unnamed group 02:13:01 within the subdivision " sulfides - oxysulphides - including selenides and tellurides " to find.
Education and Locations
Kermesit is a typical secondary mineral that is formed by the weathering of stibnite in antimony deposits. Accompanying minerals are therefore mainly stibnite and native antimony, but also Cervantite, senarmontite, Stibiconite and valentinite.
As a rather rare mineral formation Kermesit at different sites can indeed be abundant in some cases, overall it is not very common. So far (as of 2012) are around 200 localities known as. Apart from its type locality pit " New Hope of God" in Bräunsdorf in Saxony yet entered the mineral in Germany in the pit " blessing of God " at Wiesloch in Baden- Württemberg, in the circle of fire wood / Goldkronach in the Bavarian Fichtelgebirge, in the pit " help of God " ( ore- base ) and in the pits "Claus -Friedrich " and " Samson " at St. Andrew mountain in Lower Saxony Harz, the Caspari mine at Uentrop in North Rhine -Westphalia and the pits "hope" in Martin Knipp and "Apollo" at Raubach in Rhineland- Palatinate evident.
Known due to exceptional Kermesitfunde include Pezinok and Pernek in Slovakia, where radiating aggregates with up to ten centimeters long crystal needles were found. After all, up to five inches large crystals were revealed in the " Globe and Phoenix Mine" in Kwekwe in Zimbabwe.
In Austria, Kermesit found so far only in the antimony mine near Stadtschlaining in Burgenland, in the hut Erzberg in the northeast of Carinthia and the weather Bauerngraben at Mixnitz / Pernegg an der Mur in Styria.
The only known locality in Switzerland located in the municipality Aranno in the canton of Ticino.
Other localities lie including Australia, Bolivia, China, Finland, France, Greece, Iran, Italy, Japan, Canada, Kyrgyzstan, Colombia, Luxembourg, Mexico, Portugal, Spain, South Africa, Turkey, Ukraine, the United Kingdom ( UK ) and the United States of America (USA).
Crystal structure
Kermesit crystallizes in the triclinic space group P1 ( Raumgruppen-Nr. 2) with the lattice parameters a = 8.15 Å; b = 10.71 Å; c = 5.78 Å; α = 102.8 °; β = 110.6 ° and γ = 101.0 °, and four formula units per unit cell.