Heneuite is a rare phosphate mineral typically found as small, thin, transparent tabular crystals. It is most often collected by advanced mineralogists who focus on rare phosphates and minerals from specific pegmatite localities.
Is this heneuite?
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 heneuite with a known reference. Heneuite sits at Mohs 3-4 — softer than the next harder reference, harder than the previous one.
- 2Check the streakDrag the specimen across an unglazed porcelain plate. Heneuite leaves a white streak.
- 3Read the lusterHold the specimen under a strong light. Heneuite typically shows a vitreous luster.
- 4Match the color rangeCompare against the expected color range: yellow, yellow-brown, brown.
- 5Look at form & habitCrystal system: monoclinic. Typical habit: tabular crystals, sometimes in radiating aggregates.
Often confused with
Heneuite vs. its common look-alikes — and how to tell them apart in the field.
Often found alongside heneuite
Minerals reported to co-occur with heneuite. Spotting these in float or country rock is a strong cue you are in the right ground.
All properties
- Chemical formula
- CaMg₅(PO₄)₃(CO₃)(OH)
- Mohs hardness
- 3-4
- Density
- 3.16 g/cm³
- Colors
- Streak
- White
- Luster
- Vitreous
- Transparency
- Transparent
- Crystal system
- Monoclinic
- Crystal habit
- Tabular Crystals, Sometimes in Radiating Aggregates
- Cleavage
- Perfect On {001}
- Rarity
- Rare
- Uses
- Collector
- Host rock
- Phosphate-rich Pegmatites and Carbonate-hosted Deposits
- Typical price
- $50-500 depending on crystal size and quality
Where rockhounds find heneuite
Classic worldwide localities
- Heneu, Belgium
- Tip Top mine, South Dakota, USA
Field-hunting tip
Look in phosphate-rich pegmatites and carbonate-hosted deposits country — that is the host setting where heneuite typically forms. If you start seeing calcite, quartz, dolomite in float, you are in the right ground. Field specimens usually show a tabular crystals, sometimes in radiating aggregates habit, so train your eye for that shape before scanning the outcrop.
Common questions
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Find heneuite on the map
RockHoundR shows mapped rockhounding spots, access rules, and lets you log every find.
