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Götzenite crystals
L. Horváth sp.
Photo by Violet Anderson
© Royal Ontario Museum
Götzenite crystals
© Doug Merson
Götzenite crystals
© Stephan Wolfsried
(Ca,Na)(Ti,Al)Si(F,OH)
Götzenite occurs rarely at Mont Saint-Hilaire. It is one of the earliest minerals to form in the paragenesis sequence.
PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS:
Color is usually very pale yellow, tan or off-white.
Luster is greasy to dull to vitreous.
Diaphaneity is opaque.
Crystal System is triclinic; 1.
Crystal Habits include elongated tablets and acicular crystals
to 4mm, exceptional crystals to 1cm. Crystals faces are striated.
Cleavage {100} is perfect and {001} is good.
Fracture is not apparent.
Hardness is 6.
Specific Gravity is approximately 3.1 g/cm
Streak is white.
Associated Minerals include ancylite, calcite, datolite,
fluorapatite, fluorapophyllite, fluorite, hibschite, natrolite,
pectolite, tadzhikite and vesuvianite.
Distinguishing Features: Crystal habit.
Origin: Named in 1957 for Count Gustav Aldoph von Götzen
(1866-1910), the first foreigner to climb Mount Shaheru,
North Kivu, Zaire, where he discovered the mineral.
CLASSIFICATION:
Dana System
# 56.2.5.4
Strunz Classification
# VIII/C.12-10
REFERENCES:
MinRec 21:313 (1990), Dana 8:1170-1171 (1997)
DISTRIBUTION AND RARITY AT MONT SAINT-HILAIRE:
MSH
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