Barylite is an extremely rare mineral at MSH, having only a few specimens recovered. It is a late
stage mineral in the paragenesis.
PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS:
- Color is usually colourless to white.
- Luster is vitreous.
- Diaphaneity is transparent.
- Crystal System is orthorhombic; Pn21a.
- Crystal Habits include very thin elongated, bladed single crystals
and as divergent groups of crystals to 5mm.
- Cleavage {001} and {100} are perfect.
- Fracture has not been observed.
- Hardness is 7.
- Specific Gravity is approximately 4.0 g/cm3.
- Streak is white.
- Associated Minerals include aegirine, analcime, barite, biotite,
burbankite, calcite, donnayite, eudialyte, ewaldite, harmotome,
hilairite, microcline, nepheline and zircon. - Distinguishing Features: Crystal habit.
- Origin: Named in 1876 from the Greek barys, weight, referring
to its specific gravity.
| Dana class # | 55.1.1.1 Sorosilicates: isolated tetrahedral noncyclic groups, N > 1; Si2O7 groups, generally with no additional anions |
| Strunz class # | VIII/C.2-80 – Silicates; sorosilicates, with [Si2O7]6-, without anions unfamiliar to tetraheders; melilite group |