crystals of cuprite : Ray Mine, Scott Mountain area, Mineral Creek District (Ray District), Dripping Spring Mts, Pinal Co., Arizona, USA — Photo: Parent Géry · CC BY-SA 3.0
Cuprite
Also known as: Red copper ore.
Copper(I) oxide — a minor copper ore forming dark-red cubic and octahedral crystals with a submetallic to adamantine luster.
Intro adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA).
Cuprite is an IMA-recognized mineral species in the oxides & hydroxide class, with the chemical formula Cu₂O.
It crystallizes in the cubic crystal system (space group Pn3m).
Key properties: Mohs hardness 3.5–4; specific gravity 6.14; typically red; Brownish red, shining streak; Adamantine to submetallic, earthy luster; refractive index 2.849; optically isotropic.
IMA symbol Cpr, grandfathered status — known before the IMA’s founding, named in 1845.
A common mineral in the oxidized portions of many copper deposits.
It is found associated with Copper, tenorite, malachite, azurite, calcite, brochantite, antlerite, atacamite, chrysocolla, iron oxides, clay minerals.
The name comes from the Latin cuprum, for its copper content.
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