Woodwardite is a rare secondary sulfate mineral that typically forms as delicate blue to blue-green crusts or botryoidal coatings in oxidized copper deposits. It is frequently associated with other copper sulfates and can be distinguished by its distinctively pearly luster and soft texture.
Is this woodwardite?
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 woodwardite with a known reference. Woodwardite sits at Mohs 1.5-2.5, softer than the next harder reference, harder than the previous one.
- 2Check the streakDrag the specimen across an unglazed porcelain plate. Streak: light blue.
- 3Read the lusterHold the specimen under a strong light. Luster: pearly.
- 4Match the color rangeCompare against the expected color range: greenish blue, turquoise.
- 5Look at form & habitCrystal system: trigonal. Typical habit: botryoidal, fibrous.
Often confused with
Woodwardite vs. its common look-alikes, and how to tell them apart in the field.
How to tell apart: Streak differs, so Woodwardite leaves light blue, Cyanotrichite leaves pale blue; luster reads pearly on Woodwardite and silky on Cyanotrichite.
How to tell apart: Serpierite is the harder of the two (Mohs 3.5-4 vs. 1.5-2.5); streak differs, so Woodwardite leaves light blue, Serpierite leaves greenish white; luster reads pearly on Woodwardite and vitreous, pearly on cleavages on Serpierite.
How to tell apart: Streak differs, so Woodwardite leaves light blue, Devilline leaves pale green; luster reads pearly on Woodwardite and vitreous, may be pearly on {001} on Devilline.
Often found alongside woodwardite
Minerals reported to co-occur with woodwardite. Spotting these in float or country rock is a strong cue you are in the right ground.
All properties
- Chemical formula
- Cu₄Al₂(SO₄)(OH)₁₂·2-4H₂O
- Mohs hardness
- 1.5-2.5
- Density
- 2.38 g/cm³
- Colors
- Streak
- Light blue
- Luster
- Pearly
- Transparency
- Translucent to transparent
- Crystal system
- Trigonal
- Crystal habit
- Botryoidal, fibrous
- Cleavage
- None
- Rarity
- Rare
- Uses
- Collector
- Host rock
- A rare secondary mineral in the oxidized zone of copper deposits
Where rockhounds find woodwardite
Classic worldwide localities
- Maid of Sunshine mine, Courtland, Cochise Co., Arizona, and at the Deer Trail mine, six km southwest of Marysvale, Paiute Co., Utah, USA
- Cornwall, the original locality not known, England
- South Caradon mine, St. Cleer, and from Wheals Cock and Hazard, and the Botallack mine, St. Just, England
- Klausen, Tirol, Italy
- Kabasaka and Nyukaku mines, Kyogo Prefecture, Japan
Field-hunting tip
Where it forms: A rare secondary mineral in the oxidized zone of copper deposits. If you start seeing brochantite, linarite, malachite in float, you are in the right ground. Typical habit: botryoidal, fibrous. Train your eye for that shape before scanning the outcrop.
Common questions
How do you identify woodwardite?+
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Find woodwardite on the map
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