Class : Halides
    Subclass : Fluorides
    Crystal system : Cubic
    Chemistry : NaF
    Rarity : Rare

Villiaumite is a typical mineral of rare rocks : nepheline syenites and associated pegmatites, rarely phonolites ; it is also occasionally found in deposits of salt lakes. It owes its name to the French explorer and officer Maxime Villiaume who gathered a collection of minerals from Madagascar and Guinea, from which the defining samples of the mineral came. Its habitus is constant : cleavable masses or cubic crystals, rarely octahedral, of a characteristic carmine red color. Villiaumite is very easily soluble in water. It is a very toxic mineral, the sodium fluoride of which it is composed can affect the circulatory system, the heart, the skeleton, the central nervous system and the kidneys. On the other hand, it is very irritating to the skin, eyes and mucous membranes. Despite this it remains sought after by collectors.

No twin known for this mineral species.

No fake recorded for this mineral species.