 Previous |
Gems of New York State |  Next |
 Photo courtesy of W. Wight. Hexagonite3.29 ctWight Mine Fowler, St. Lawrence County | ||
(under construction) A very rare purplish pink variety of tremolite called hexagonite is known to come from only one place in the world: St. Lawerence County, New York State. Though it is usually heavily fractured, faceted gems have been able to be cut from prismatic crystals and material suitable for fashioning cat's eye cabochons has also been found. Hexagonite is recovered from talc mines in the Balmat area and owes it color to manganese. A chatoyant variety from Fowler was examined by the GIA in 1985 and was shown to contain numerous inclusions including parallel needles. A color photo along with further details may be seen in Gems & Gemology, Summer 1985 Lab Notes section (properites: RI 1.600-1.625, birefringence 0.025, pleochroism: weak orangy pink, purpleish pink and purple, Fryer, 1985). Note: hexagonite is in the monoclinic crystal system though its name reflects its apparent hexagonal structure. Source: Robinson, G.W. and Chamberlain, S.C. (2007). The Gems of New York State. Rocks and Minerals, Vol. 82, No. 6, pp. 458-463. | ||
| Previous |
Gems of New York State | Next |