Nordenskiöldine is a rare calcium tin borate mineral typically occurring as tabular, yellow-to-brown crystals. It is primarily found in skarns and complex pegmatite environments, often associated with other tin-bearing minerals.
Is this nordenskiöldine?
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 nordenskiöldine with a known reference. Nordenskiöldine 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. Streak: white.
- 3Read the lusterHold the specimen under a strong light. Luster: vitreous, pearly on {0001}.
- 4Match the color rangeCompare against the expected color range: yellow, colorless.
- 5Look at form & habitCrystal system: trigonal. Typical habit: tabular.
Often confused with
Nordenskiöldine vs. its common look-alikes, and how to tell them apart in the field.
Often found alongside nordenskiöldine
Minerals reported to co-occur with nordenskiöldine. Spotting these in float or country rock is a strong cue you are in the right ground.
All properties
- Chemical formula
- CaSn(BO₃)₂
- Mohs hardness
- 5.5-6
- Density
- 4.09-4.20 g/cm³
- Streak
- White
- Luster
- Vitreous, pearly on {0001}
- Transparency
- Transparent
- Crystal system
- Trigonal
- Crystal habit
- Tabular
- Cleavage
- Perfect on {0001}; indistinct on {1011}
- Rarity
- Rare
- Uses
- Collector
- Host rock
- Very rare in an alkalic pegmatite (Arø Island, Norway); in a hydrothermal deposit in metasomatized marble (Arandis, Namibia); in skarns (China)
Where rockhounds find nordenskiöldine
Classic worldwide localities
- Brooks Mountain, Alaska, USA
- Arø Island, Langesundsfjord, Norway
- Stiepelman mine, Arandis, Namibia
- Titovskoye deposit, polar Sakha, Russia
- Damoshan deposit, Gejiu tin district, Yunnan Province, at the Dading tin-iron deposits, Guizhou Province, and in an undisclosed deposit, Wuxian Co., Jiangsu Province, China
- MW prospect, near Smart River, Cassiar Mountains, Yukon Territory, Canada
Field-hunting tip
Where it forms: Very rare in an alkalic pegmatite (Arø Island, Norway); in a hydrothermal deposit in metasomatized marble (Arandis, Namibia); in skarns (China). If you start seeing meliphanite, homilite, zircon in float, you are in the right ground. Typical habit: tabular. Train your eye for that shape before scanning the outcrop.
Common questions
How do you identify nordenskiöldine?+
Where is nordenskiöldine found?+
What rocks look like nordenskiöldine?+
What minerals are found with nordenskiöldine?+
What kind of rock does nordenskiöldine form in?+
What is nordenskiöldine used for?+
Find nordenskiöldine on the map
RockHoundR shows mapped rockhounding spots, access rules, and lets you log every find.
