Cinabrio
Cinabrio is a mineral with formula HgS, in the Sulfuros group. This specimen comes from Idria Mine 13th Level Delo shaft, Bilek, Idrija, Gorizia, Eslovenia and joined the Terrium collection in 2004.
Description
Red cinnabar in well-defined microcrystals lining a cavity in dark bituminous dolomite with white dolomite rhombohedra and small yellow calcite crystals.
History of this specimen
Collected personally by Aleksander Rečnik shortly before the final closure of the mine in 2004. Rečnik is the author of the monograph "Minerals of the mercury ore deposit Idrija".
About Cinabrio
Cinnabar is the principal mercury ore and the source of the vermilion pigment. In oxidising environments, part of the mineral alters and releases metallic mercury, which deposits on surfaces as visible droplets. Seeing cinnabar together with native mercury makes clear how this element behaves in nature. Its symbol is Hg, from the Latin hydrargyrum, and in English it is known as quicksilver because it resembles rapidly moving liquid silver.
About the locality
Discovered c. 1490, Idrija formed with Almadén the great global axis of mercury. From the 16th century, both mines fell within the Habsburg sphere—Idrija administered under the Austrian branch and Almadén by the Spanish Monarchy. Together they sustained much of the mercury trade that enabled the amalgamation of American silver. In the 19th century, this arrangement culminated when the Rothschilds assumed financial control of both operations. For that shared and inseparable history, Idrija and Almadén were recognised jointly as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Technical data
- Catalogue No.
- 0320
- Composition
- HgS
- Name
- Cinabrio
- Group
- Sulfuros
- Category
- Cavella
- Matrix
- Dolomía bituminosa
- Associations
- Dolomita, calcita
- Mine
- Idria Mine 13th Level Delo shaft
- District / Municipality
- Bilek
- Province
- Idrija
- Region
- Gorizia
- Country
- Eslovenia
- Size (cm)
- 4.5 x 3 x 2.5
- Weight
- 43.8 g
- Acquired
- 2004
- Ex-collection
- Aleksander Rečnik
- Etymology
- From Arabic "zinjafr", via medieval Latin "cinnabaris", the historical name of the red pigment extracted from this mineral.
- Quality
- Buena
- Value trend
- Estable
Related specimens
- Acantita (Paramórfica tras Argentita) — Marruecos
- Calcopirita (Irisada) — Francia
- Cinabrio — España
- Esfalerita (Cleiofana o Blenda acaramelada) — España
- Esfalerita — España
- Esfalerita (Cleiofana o Blenda acaramelada) — España
- Esfalerita (Cleiofana o Blenda acaramelada) — España
- Esfalerita (Marmatita) — Kosovo