Descloizite

  Descloizite is a rare mineral species consisting of basic lead and zinc vanadate, (Pb, Zn)₂(OH)VO₄, crystallizing in the orthorhombic system and isomorphous with olivenite.

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It was discovered by A Damour in 1854, and named by him in honor of the French mineralogist Des Cloizeaux. It occurs as small prismatic or pyramidal crystals, usually forming drusy crusts and stalactitic aggregates; also as fibrous encrusting masses with a mammillary surface.

The color is deep cherry-red to brown or black, and the crystals are transparent or translucent with a greasy lustre; the streak is orange-yellow to brown; specific gravity 5.9 to 6.2; hardness 31/2. A variety known as cuprodescloizite is dull green in color; it contains a considerable amount of copper replacing zinc and some arsenic replacing vanadium. Descloizite occurs in veills of lead ores in association with pyromorphite, vanadinite, wulfenite, etc. Localities are the Sierra de Cordoba in Argentina, Lake Valley in Sierra County, New Mexico, Arizona, Phoenixville in Pennsylvania, and Kappel (Eisen-Kappel) near Klagenfurt in Carinthia.

Other names which have been applied to this species are vanadite, tritochorite and ramirite; the uncertain vanadates eusynchite, araeoxene and dechenite are possibly identical with it.

References

• This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain.