DIAPHORITE

    Class : Sulfides and sulfosalts
    Subclass : Sulfosalts
    Crystal system : Monoclinic
    Chemistry : Ag3Pb2Sb3S8
    Rarity : Rare

Diaphorite is a sulphide of medium-temperature silver-bearing polymetallic hydrothermal veins. Its name comes from the Greek diaphoros (different), because it is a distinct species from freieslebenite with which it was confused. It is a rare mineral which appears massive, or in prismatic crystals becoming acicular by elongation on [001], with frequently striated faces following elongation ; the largest are almost centimeters. Diaphorite is lead gray and commonly twinned. Containing 23% silver, diaphorite is an ancillary silver ore, often recovered alongside richer ore.

Main photo : Diaphorite from Silver tunnel, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada © Gianfranco Ciccolini

Diaphorite from Silver tunnel, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada © Marko Burkhardt
Diaphorite from Borgofranco Mines, Piedmont, Italy © Beppe Finello
Diaphorite from Pribram, Czech Republic © Bojuslav Bures
Diaphorite from the Fournial mine, Cantal, France © Patrice Queneau

Diaphorite in the World

Very beautiful groups of diaphorite crystals come to us from Pribram (Czech Republic), Baia Sprie (Romania), Machacamarca (Oruro, Bolivia) and Silver tunnel in British Columbia (Canada). Diaphorite is also present in beautiful specimens in the silver veins of Saxony, notably at Freiberg, at Catorce (San Luis Potosi, Mexico) and at Lake Chelan (Washington).

Diaphorite in France

In France, diaphorite is present in barely millimetric crystals in several silver veins in the Massif Central : in Pontgibaud (Puy-de-Dôme), Le Deveix (Corrèze), Fournial (Cantal), Chavaniac-Lafayette (Haute-Loire). It is also reported in Peyrebrune (Tarn) and Coët Stival (Morbihan).

Twinning

Diaphorite commonly twins on {120} and {241}.

Fakes and treatments

No fakes listed for this mineral species.


Hardness : 2.5 to 3
Density : 6.04
Fracture : Irregular to sub-conchoidal
Streak : Gray

TP : Opaque
RI : -
Birefringence : -
Optical character : -
Pleochroism : None
Fluorescence : None

Solubility : Nitric acid


Magnetism : None
Radioactivity : None

ReCaptcha

This service is used to secure web forms of our website and required if you want to contact us. By accepting it you agree to Google's privacy policy: https://policies.google.com/privacy

Google Analytics

Google Analytics is a service used on our website that tracks, reports traffic and measures how users interact with our website content in order for us to improve it and provide better services.

Facebook

Our website allows you to like or share its content on Facebook social network. By activating and using it you agree to Facebook's privacy policy: https://www.facebook.com/policy/cookies/

YouTube

Integrated videos provided by YouTube are used on our website. By accepting to watch them you agree to Google's privacy policy: https://policies.google.com/privacy

Twitter

Integrated tweets and share services of Twitter are used on our website. By accepting and using these you agree to Twitter's privacy policy: https://help.twitter.com/en/rules-and-policies/twitter-cookies

PInterest

Our website allows you to share its content on PInterest social network. By activating and using it you agree to PInterest's privacy policy: https://policy.pinterest.com/en/privacy-policy/