Botryogen
Mineral MgFe3+(SO4)2(OH)·7H2O
Take care.
- Damaged by water: Keep it dry: don't wash it, and keep it out of damp places.
- Breaks down in damp air: Keep it dry and in steady humidity; some crumble or rot as they take on moisture.
About it
Orange-red, grape-like clusters and small prisms formed as pyrite oxidizes in dry climates. Named from the Greek for a bunch of grapes; first described from Falun in Sweden, and fine from Chile.
- Type
- Mineral
- Group
- Sulfate, hydrated
- Formula
- MgFe3+(SO4)2(OH)·7H2O
- Hardness (Mohs)
- 2–2.5
- Specific gravity
- 2.1–2.14
- Streak
- light yellow
- Lustre
- vitreous (glassy)
- Crystal system
- Monoclinic
- Colours
- orange-red, deep red, orange-yellow
- Transparency
- transparent, translucent
- Cleavage and fracture
- good in one direction
Typical values: real specimens vary. For more, see mindat.org.