Kintoreite is a rare lead-iron phosphate member of the alunite supergroup typically found as secondary crusts or botryoidal coatings in oxidized lead mines. It is visually indistinguishable from related plumbogummite group minerals without chemical analysis and is most prized by mineral collectors for its presence in classic oxidation zones.
Is this kintoreite?
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 kintoreite with a known reference. Kintoreite sits at Mohs 4, softer than the next harder reference, harder than the previous one.
- 2Check the streakDrag the specimen across an unglazed porcelain plate. Streak: pale yellowish green.
- 3Read the lusterHold the specimen under a strong light. Luster: vitreous to adamantine (crystals); greasy to waxy (aggregates).
- 4Match the color rangeCompare against the expected color range: cream white, yellowish green, brownish yellow.
- 5Look at form & habitCrystal system: trigonal. Typical habit: crystalline, encrustations, prismatic.
Often confused with
Kintoreite vs. its common look-alikes, and how to tell them apart in the field.
How to tell apart: Streak differs, so Kintoreite leaves pale yellowish green, Plumbogummite leaves white.
How to tell apart: Streak differs, so Kintoreite leaves pale yellowish green, Corkite leaves yellow.
How to tell apart: Streak differs, so Kintoreite leaves pale yellowish green, Beudantite leaves grayish yellow to green.
Often found alongside kintoreite
Minerals reported to co-occur with kintoreite. Spotting these in float or country rock is a strong cue you are in the right ground.
All properties
- Chemical formula
- PbFe₃(PO₄)₂(OH)₅·H₂O
- Mohs hardness
- 4
- Density
- 4.25-4.34 g/cm³
- Streak
- Pale yellowish green
- Luster
- Vitreous to adamantine (crystals); greasy to waxy (aggregates)
- Transparency
- Transparent to translucent
- Crystal system
- Trigonal
- Crystal habit
- Crystalline, encrustations, prismatic
- Cleavage
- Good on {0001}
- Rarity
- Rare
- Uses
- Collector
- Host rock
- A rare secondary mineral in the oxidized zone of a Pb–Zn deposit
Where rockhounds find kintoreite
Classic worldwide localities
- Kintore and Block 14 open cuts, Broken Hill, New South Wales, Australia
- Clara mine, near Oberwolfach, and the Igelschlatt mine, near Grafenhausen, Black Forest, Germany
Field-hunting tip
Where it forms: A rare secondary mineral in the oxidized zone of a Pb–Zn deposit. If you start seeing segnitite, pyromorphite, mimetite in float, you are in the right ground. Typical habit: crystalline, encrustations, prismatic. Train your eye for that shape before scanning the outcrop.
Common questions
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Find kintoreite on the map
RockHoundR shows mapped rockhounding spots, access rules, and lets you log every find.
