Matlockite is a rare
lead
Lead is a chemical element with the Symbol (chemistry), symbol Pb (from the Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a heavy metals, heavy metal that is density, denser than most common materials. Lead is Mohs scale of mineral hardness#Intermediate ...
halide mineral, named after the town of
Matlock in
Derbyshire
Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands, England. It includes much of the Peak District National Park, the southern end of the Pennine range of hills and part of the National Forest. It borders Greater Manchester to the no ...
, England, where it was first discovered in a nearby mine.
[ Matlockite (chemical formula: PbFCl) gives its name to the matlockite group which consists of rare minerals of a similar structure.
]
Description
The mineral, a lead fluorochloride (formula PbFCl), was discovered sometime around the early 1800s at Bage Mine at Bolehill near Matlock, together with specimens of phosgenite
Phosgenite is a rare mineral consisting of lead chlorocarbonate, (PbCl)2CO3. The tetragonal crystals are prism (geometry), prismatic or tabular in habit: they are usually colorless and transparent, and have a brilliant adamantine Lustre (mineralog ...
and anglesite
Anglesite is a lead sulfate mineral with the chemical formula PbSO4. It occurs as an oxidation product of primary lead sulfide ore, galena. Anglesite occurs as prismatic orthorhombic crystals and earthy masses, and is isomorphous with barite and ...
. Although phosgenite was known at this time, it seems likely that matlockite itself remained unappreciated as a new mineral for some fifty years. It was given the name by Greg in 1851. The first mention of Matlockite may have been in Mawe's Mineralogy of Derbyshire in 1802 in which he gives a detailed description of phosgenite, which is then followed by a mention of a mineral he refers to as "glass lead" - a description which does rather equate to the appearance of matlockite. It is a light, translucent creamy-yellow colour, but heavy in weight having a density that is over 7.1.[
A very large specimen 10 cm across, and originating from Derbyshire, exists in the collections of the American Museum of Natural History.][Frondell, Clifford]
American Mineralogist, Vol 20, 469-473, 1935
Retrieved on 2011-01-11 A 7 cm specimen can be found in the collection of Derby Museum and Art Gallery
Derby Museum and Art Gallery is a museum and art gallery in Derby, England. It was established in 1879, along with Derby Central Library, in a new building designed by Richard Knill Freeman and given to Derby by Michael Thomas Bass. The coll ...
.type locality
Type locality may refer to:
* Type locality (biology)
* Type locality (geology)
See also
* Local (disambiguation)
* Locality (disambiguation)
{{disambiguation ...
of Derbyshire. The mineral is also found in Tiger, Arizona
Tiger is a former populated place in Pinal County in the U.S. state of Arizona. The town was settled as Schultz ''circa'' 1881 in what was then the Arizona Territory, then later reestablished as Tiger after World War I.
History
The area that ...
, Laurium
Laurium or Lavrio ( ell, Λαύριο; grc, Λαύρειον (later ); before early 11th century BC: Θορικός '' Thorikos''; from Middle Ages until 1908: Εργαστήρια ''Ergastiria'') is a town in southeastern part of Attica, Gree ...
in Greece, a mine near Essen
Essen (; Latin: ''Assindia'') is the central and, after Dortmund, second-largest city of the Ruhr, the largest urban area in Germany. Its population of makes it the fourth-largest city of North Rhine-Westphalia after Cologne, Düsseldorf and ...
in Germany and near Campiglia in Tuscany
it, Toscano (man) it, Toscana (woman)
, population_note =
, population_blank1_title =
, population_blank1 =
, demographics_type1 = Citizenship
, demographics1_footnotes =
, demographics1_title1 = Italian
, demogra ...
. Samples have also been found at locations in South Africa, Peru, Chile, Australia, Austria, France and Italy.[
]
The matlockite group
The matlockite group consists of a number of minerals which share a similar crystal structure. The group includes bismuth, lead or calcium halides: bismoclite
Bismoclite is a bismuth oxohalide mineral with formula BiOCl. It is the naturally occurring form of bismuth oxychloride. The name was derived from its chemical constituents. It is a secondary bismuth mineral first thought to be composed of bismut ...
, daubréeite
Daubréeite is a rare bismuth oxohalide mineral with formula . It is a creamy-white to yellow-brown, soft, earthy clay–like mineral which crystallizes in the tetragonal crystal system. It is a member of the matlockite group.
It was first descr ...
, laurionite , paralaurionite , rorisite CaFCl, zavaritskite and the eponymous matlockite.
References
External links
{{Derby Museum
Halide minerals
Lead minerals
Tetragonal minerals
Minerals in space group 129
Collections of Derby Museum and Art Gallery
Mixed anion compounds