Anatase is one of the three natural polymorphs of titanium dioxide. It is highly prized by collectors for its sharp, brilliant, and often deep-blue or black bipyramidal crystals that form in alpine-type clefts.
Is this anatase?
5-step field checkRun through these checks against the specimen in your hand. The more boxes tick, the more confident the ID.
- 1Test the hardnessTry to scratch anatase with a known reference. Anatase sits at Mohs 5.5-6, softer than the next harder reference, harder than the previous one.
- 2Check the streakDrag the specimen across an unglazed porcelain plate. Anatase leaves a white to pale yellow streak.
- 3Read the lusterHold the specimen under a strong light. Anatase typically shows a adamantine luster.
- 4Match the color rangeCompare against the expected color range: black, brown, blue, yellow.
- 5Look at form & habitCrystal system: tetragonal. Typical habit: bipyramidal crystals, tabular, pseudo-octahedral.
Often confused with
Anatase vs. its common look-alikes, and how to tell them apart in the field.
How to tell apart: Streak differs, so Anatase leaves white to pale yellow, Rutile leaves pale brown to yellow; luster reads adamantine on Anatase and metallic to adamantine on Rutile.
How to tell apart: Streak differs, so Anatase leaves white to pale yellow, Brookite leaves white to yellowish-white; luster reads adamantine on Anatase and submetallic on Brookite.
How to tell apart: Streak differs, so Anatase leaves white to pale yellow, Cassiterite leaves white.
Often found alongside anatase
Minerals reported to co-occur with anatase. Spotting these in float or country rock is a strong cue you are in the right ground.
All properties
- Chemical formula
- TiO₂
- Mohs hardness
- 5.5-6
- Density
- 3.9 g/cm³
- Streak
- White to Pale Yellow
- Luster
- Adamantine
- Transparency
- Translucent
- Crystal system
- Tetragonal
- Crystal habit
- Bipyramidal Crystals, Tabular, Pseudo-octahedral
- Cleavage
- Perfect Basal, Distinct Prismatic
- Rarity
- Uncommon
- Uses
- Collector, Scientific Research
- Host rock
- Hydrothermal Alpine Veins, Sedimentary Deposits, Igneous Rocks
- Typical price
- $10-100 per specimen depending on crystal size and quality
Where rockhounds find anatase
Classic worldwide localities
- Hordaland, Norway
- Dauphiné, France
- Binn Valley, Switzerland
- Magnet Cove, Arkansas, USA
- Minas Gerais, Brazil
Field-hunting tip
Look in hydrothermal alpine veins, sedimentary deposits, igneous rocks country, the host setting where anatase typically forms. If you start seeing quartz, adularia, brookite in float, you are in the right ground. Field specimens usually show a bipyramidal crystals, tabular, pseudo-octahedral habit, so train your eye for that shape before scanning the outcrop.
Common questions
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Find anatase on the map
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