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Dominant species
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Vesuvianite
Vesuvianite
Chemical
Formula
Ca10(Mg, Fe)2Al4(SiO4)5(Si2O7)2(OH,F)4
Species
Silicates
Crystal
System
Tetragonal
Mohs
Scale
6
Specific
Gravity
3.32-3.43
Color
Yellow, green, brown; colorless to white, blue, Purple, bluish green, pink, red, black, commonly zoned
Streak
White
Luster
Vitreous, Resinous
Refractive
Index
n = 1.703 - 1.752 n = 1.700 - 1.746
Diaphaneity
Transparent, Translucent
Cleavage
Poor/IndistinctPoor on Very poor on
Fracture
Irregular/Uneven, Sub-Conchoidal
Crystal Habit:Short pyramidal to long prismatic crystals common, massive to columnar
Geological Setting:Skarns or regional metamorphism of limestones.
Vesuvianite, also known as idocrase, is a green, brown, yellow, or blue silicate mineral. Vesuvianite occurs as tetragonal crystals in skarn deposits and limestones that have been subjected to contact metamorphism. It was first discovered within included blocks or adjacent to lavas on Mount Vesuvius, hence its name.

A bluish variety known as cyprine has been reported from Franklin, New Jersey and other locations; the blue is due to impurities of copper. Californite is a name sometimes used for jade-like vesuvianite, also known as California-, American- or Vesuvianite-jade. Xanthite is a manganese rich variety. Wiluite is an optically positive variety from Wilui, Siberia. Idocrase is an older synonym sometimes used for gemstone-quality vesuvianite.