FormulaFe1−xS (x = 0 to 0.17)
OriginNikolaevskiy Mine, Dal´negorsk (Russland)
Descriptionlarge golden brown pyrrothite crystal on matrix overgrown with quartz crystals
Classification (Lapis) Sulfides
Crystal Systemmonoclinic
Hardness3,5 – 4,5
ColourBronze-yellow to pinchbeck-brown; tarnishes quickly, rarely to iridescence
StreakDark grayish black
Luminescencenone observed 
LustreMetallic
Transparency (Opacity)Opaque
CleavageDistinct
FractureUneven to Conchoidal
Magnetismnegative
Geological SettingMainly in mafic igneous rocks, typically as magmatic segregations; also in pegmatites, and in high-temperature hydrothermal and replacement veins, and in sedimentary and metamorphic rocks; in iron meteorites
Specific Gravity4,69 g/cm3
crystal model







#© Mark Holtkamp