Tintinaite is a rare lead antimony sulfosalt that typically occurs as fine acicular or fibrous needle-like crystals. It is most commonly found in low-temperature hydrothermal veins and is highly prized by collectors of rare sulfosalts due to its complexity and limited distribution.
Is this tintinaite?
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 tintinaite with a known reference. Tintinaite sits at Mohs 2.5-3, softer than the next harder reference, harder than the previous one.
- 2Check the streakDrag the specimen across an unglazed porcelain plate. Streak: black.
- 3Read the lusterHold the specimen under a strong light. Luster: metallic.
- 4Match the color rangeCompare against the expected color range: lead gray.
- 5Look at form & habitCrystal system: orthorhombic. Typical habit: bladed.
Often confused with
Tintinaite vs. its common look-alikes, and how to tell them apart in the field.
How to tell apart: Streak differs, so Tintinaite leaves black, Jamesonite leaves black. grayish.
How to tell apart: Streak differs, so Tintinaite leaves black, Bournonite leaves steel-gray to iron-black; luster reads metallic on Tintinaite and brilliant to dull on Bournonite.
How to tell apart: Streak differs, so Tintinaite leaves black, Stibnite leaves lead-gray.
Often found alongside tintinaite
Minerals reported to co-occur with tintinaite. Spotting these in float or country rock is a strong cue you are in the right ground.
All properties
- Chemical formula
- Pb₁₀Cu₂Sb₁₆S₃₅
- Mohs hardness
- 2.5-3
- Density
- 5.48 g/cm³
- Colors
- Streak
- Black
- Luster
- Metallic
- Transparency
- Opaque
- Crystal system
- Orthorhombic
- Crystal habit
- Bladed
- Cleavage
- Distinct on {010}
- Rarity
- Rare
- Uses
- Collector, Scientific research
- Host rock
- As small masses and veinlets in malachite-stained quartz (Tintina mines, Canada)
Where rockhounds find tintinaite
Classic worldwide localities
- Cofer deposit, near Mineral, Louisa Co., Virginia, USA
- Tintina silver mines, Watson Lake, Yukon Territory (type locality), Canada
- Deer Park mine, Rossland, British Columbia, Canada
- Boliden, Västerbotten, Sweden
- Slovkia, at the Mária mine, Rožňava, and in the Däbrava deposit, Low Tatra Mountains
- Shexingping mine, Cheng Co., Hunan Province, China
Field-hunting tip
Where it forms: As small masses and veinlets in malachite-stained quartz (Tintina mines, Canada). If you start seeing jamesonite, argentian tetrahedrite, galena in float, you are in the right ground. Typical habit: bladed. Train your eye for that shape before scanning the outcrop.
Common questions
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Find tintinaite on the map
RockHoundR shows mapped rockhounding spots, access rules, and lets you log every find.
