Stibnite Crystals

Long Slender Stibnite Crystals

Stibnite is a distinctive steely grey coloured mineral with a metallic lustre.

An ore of antimony, stibnite forms long slender prismatic crystals that often grow in different directions.

One of the uses of the chemical element antimony is to create the blue colour in fireworks.

The mineral calcite is often associated with stibnite.  It can clearly be seen on many of these needle-like crystals.

Each crystal sparkles incessantly as it catches the light at almost every angle.

Stibnite should be handled as little as possible because it's exceptionally fragile.  On Mohs scale of mineral hardness it grades just 2.  That's only slightly harder than the clay mineral talc used to create talcum powder.