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 — 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 — 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 — 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 — that is 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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