Cuspidine

cuspidine

monticellite

wollastonite

perovskite

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Formula: Ca8(Si2O7)2F4
Sorosilicate (Si2O7 groups), wöhlerite group
Crystal System: Monoclinic
Specific gravity: 2.97 to 2.99 measured, 2.98 calculated
Hardness: 5 to 6
Streak: White
Colour: Colourless, tan, light brown, pale red.
Common impurities: Mn,Na,K,Cl
Environments

Metamorphic environments

Cuspidine is an uncommon sorosilicate. Associated minerals include augite, hornblende, diopside, grossular, biotite, phlogopite, monticellite, wollastonite, calcite, spinel, magnetite and perovskite (HOM, Dana).

Localities

At the Shijiang Shan-Shalonggou mining area, Inner Mongolia, China, the mineral deposits occur predominantly in veins of hydrothermal origin in skarn. Cuspidine was first identified on 2013 Shijiangshan specimens. Only a very few pieces with cuspidine were recovered, with crystals up to about 1 cm, sometimes associated with vesuvianite or andradite. Cuspidine proved to be abundant on 2017–2018 specimens, occurring as drusy coatings and masses to about 1 cm, commonly in association with olshanskyite, roweite and johnbaumite (R&M 96.5.400-401).

At the Dupezeh Mountain, Iraq, cuspidine occurs in melilite skarn (HOM).

At the type locality, Monte Somma, Somma-Vesuvius Complex, Naples, Campania, Italy, cuspidine has been found in ejected masses (Webmin, HOM).

At Novinka, Yakutia, Russia, cuspidine has been found in a kimberlite pipe (Dana).

At Franklin, New Jersey, USA, cuspidine occurs in contact metamorphosed limestone (HOM). It is in apparent chemical equilibrium with glaucochroite, which is younger, and hardystonite, which is altered in some specimens to clinohedrite. Cuspidine also occurs, within assemblages of glaucochroite crystals, as a late-stage mineral, forming druses with clinohedrite in solution vugs in willemite (AM 72.423).

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