Harmotome Mineral

Good day dear community, hopefully you are all well and your day has been full of interesting experiences! In this post, I would like to talk a little about minerals and introduce you to a new specimen.

Here you can see a interesting looking mineral which is also known as Harmotome and the first discoveries date back to the 18th century, however, it should still take a few years for it to receive its current name by the French mineralogist René-Just Haüy (1743 - 1822). Haüy was one of the most important mineralogists of his time and, due to his diverse findings in the mineralogy, was a welcome member of various associations and in addition he was the author of many works and after him even his own mineral became known, which also bears the name Haüyne. A typical characteristic of harmotome is that it tends to form twins and on the basis of these properties he decided to name it after the greek words for put together cuts or parts and it is typical that it can form different forms of crystals. From the chemical composition, it is also included in the group of zeolites and an important distinguishing feature is the white color, which can vary depending on the addition with other minerals, as well as the typical shine and harmotome has been found nowadays in 200 different locations. It is usually found together with other minerals of the zeolite group and this specimen is a good example because one part occupies its typical white color and the other has assumed a more brownish or yellow color due to the influence of impurities. The origin can be traced back to hydrothermal processes and because of the rarity there are only a few areas of application and it is sometimes used as a part for treatment of water or the electronic industry and it enjoys particularly great popularity in the circles of collectors.

Thanks a lot for stopping by and I hope you could learn something new about minerals! I captured these pictures with my Camera Sony Alpha 6000 plus 55-210 mm lens.