Malachite
Malachite is a bright green secondary copper mineral - that means it is formed by
alteration of other copper minerals. It is formed by aqueous solutions of copper acting
on limestone or by carbonated waters acting on other copper-minerals. It is typically
found as crystals or coatings on rock in the upper part - the so-called oxidation zone - of
copper deposits, but it may also form micro-crystals or blue smear on rocks on mine
dumps. It is often associated by other secondary copper minerals, particularly Azurite.
The name 'Malachite' is derived from the Greek moloche, mallow, referring to the
green colour, and Malachite has indeed been used as a green pigment for paintings
through history.
Malachite is quite abundant, and known from most copper deposits, whether worked as
mines or not. By far the most best cutting material comes from the now depleted deposit
at Nizhne-Tagilsk (near Ekaterinburg, Russia), providing material for the Eremitage in
St. Petersburg, and from various deposits in Shaba (Congo). The past 10-15 years
excellent crystallised Malachite has come from Kambove (Shaba, Congo). Very
attractive specimens of Malachite pseudomorph after Azurite have been found in
Tsumeb (Oshikoto Region, Namibia) and Chessy (near Lyon, France).
Our records indicate that Malachite from a range of deposits occurs on specimens that
also carry one or more of the following minerals: Achantite, Actinolite, Adamite,
€girine, Algodonite, Allanite-(Ce), Antimonpearceite, Aragonite, Atacamite, Azurite,
Barite, Bastnäsite, Bayldonite, Becquerelite, Betpakdalite, Beudantite, Beyerite,
Biotite var. Manganophyllite, Bismite, Bismuthinite, Blatonite, Bornite, Brochantite,
Brochantite, Bromargyrite, Calcite, Cerite, Cerussite, Chalcocite, Chalcomenite,
Chalcopyrite, Chalcostibite, Chalcothallite, Chlorargyrite, Chrysocolla, Claraite,
Connellite, Copper, Cornetite, Cornwallite, Covellite, Cuprite, Cuprosklodowskite,
Cuprostibite, Demesmaekerite, Derriksite, Devilline, Digenit var. Se-Digenite, Dioptase,
Dolomite, Duftite, Dundasite, Epidote, Epistolite, Erythrite, Fluorite, Franklinite,
Freibergite, Galena, Gearksutite, Gmelinite, Goethite, Goethite, Gold, Grossular,
Guilleminite, Gypsum, Halite, Hematite, Hemimorphite, Heterogenite, Ianthinite,
Jacobsite, Kasolite, Kolwezite, Kryolite, Kryolite, Langite, Lanthanite, Lavendulane,
Linarite, Lindgrenite, Linnaeite, Magnetite, Metatorbernite, Metatyuyamunite, Miersite,
Mimetite, Minium, Murdochite, Muscovite, Namibite, Nantokite, Natrolite, Olivenite,
Opal, Pachnolite, Phosphuranylite, Plumbojarosite, Pseudomalachite, Pyrite, Pyrolusite,
Pyromorphite, Quartz, Reichenbachite, Rosasite, Rutherfordine, Schulenbergite,
Sengierite, Serpierite, Siderite, Silver, Skinnerite, Sklodowskite, Smithsonite, Sodalite,
Sphalerite, Stannite, Stolzite, Sulvanite, Talc, Tennantite, Tenorite, Tetrahedrit var. Hg-
Tetrahedrite, Thomsenolite, Thomsonite, Torbernite, Tšrnebohmite, Tripuhyite,
Tsumebite, Uranopilite, Ussingite, Vandenbrandeite, Vandendriesscheite, Vesignieite,
Willemite, Wolframite, Wroewolfeite, Wulfenite, and Yarrowite.
Specimen Handling
Malachite is for all practical purposes stable in a normal household environment. It is
not harmed by light, changes in temperature in the normal comfort range, or known to
decompose. Malachite specimens can be brittle and should be handled with care like any
other mineral specimen. Malachite is slightly soluble in water, but is probably not
harmed appreciably by a swift rinse.
Specimen of
Malachite pseudomorphous after Azurite from Emke Mine in Namibia
Bibliography
Agricola, Georgius. 1556 (and subsequent editions, several languages). De Re
Metallica [translated by Herbert Clark Hoover & Lou Henry Hoover, 1912, 1950,
1986]
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Bauer, Max. 1896. Edelsteinkunde, 1st ed.
Bauer, Max. 1909. Edelsteinkunde, 2nd ed.
Bauer, Max. 1968. Precious Stones, I-II. Dover Publications
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Gaines, Richard W., H. Catherine W. Skinner, Eugene E. Foord, Brian Mason,
Abraham Rosenzweig & Vandall T. King. 1997. Dana's new mineralogy: the
system of mineralogy of James Dwight Dana and Edward Salisbury Dana, 8th
ed.
Gebhard, Georg. 1991. Tsumeb, eine deutsch-afrikanische Geschichte.
Gebhard, Georg. 1999. Tsumeb, a unique mineral locality.
Hintze, Carl (ed.) 1916-1929. Handbuch der Mineralogie, vol. 1, section 3, part
1.
Noe-Nygaard, Arne. 1966. Mineralogi, 3rd ed.
Palache, Charles, Harry Berman & Clifford Frondel. 1951. The system of
mineralogy of James Dwight Dana and Edward Salisbury Dana, Yale University
1837-1892, 7th ed. Vol. 2.
Panczner, William D. 1987. Minerals of Mexico.
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16th ed.
Roberts, Willard Lincoln, Thomas J. Campbell & George Robert Rapp jr. 1990.
Encyclopedia of Minerals 2nd ed.
Sinkankas, John. 1964. Mineralogy.
Specimen of
Malachite and Azurite from Tsumeb Mine in Namibia
This page is authored by Claus Hedegaard.
