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Formula: PbCu4FeBiS6
Sulphosalt, bismuth-bearing mineral
Crystal system: Orthorhombic
Specific gravity: 6.06 calculated
Hardness: 4
Colour: Pale grey to greyish-white in reflected light
Environments
Miharaite occurs in skarn, as a product of
contact metamorphism (Mindat). Associated
minerals include wittichenite,
bornite, chalcopyrite
and galena
(HOM).
Localities
At the type locality, the Honpi deposit, Mihara mine, Higashi-Mihara, Ibara City, Okayama Prefecture, Japan,
the deposit is a is a metasomatic bornite-rich
skarn deposit of copper. The bornite occurs as disseminations in a
hedenbergite-garnet-epidote
skarn associated commonly with
chalcopyrite. Both miharaite and
wittichenite occur both as separate grains and also associated
with chalcopyrite and/or
galena as small granules or drops (10-30 microns) in the
bornite, and sometimes along grain boundaries of
bornite as stringers or chains of drops. It is suggested that
wittichenite, as well as
chalcopyrite, is probably a product of exsolution from a
bornite solid solution stable at high temperature. Miharaite
occurs only microscopically, generally several tens of microns in size but up to 0.3 mm, as tiny granular
drop-like shapes or irregular masses, closely associated with
chalcopyrite, galena
and sometimes wittichenite
(AM 65.784-788).
At the Imooka mine, Kagamino-cho, Tomata District, Okayama Prefecture, Japan, miharaite occurs in a
mineralised quartz vein through
granite
(HOM).
At the Ulsan Mine, Buk District, Ulsan, South Korea, miharaite occurs in a
bornite vein in copper
skarn ore
(HOM).
At the Wedelseie Adit, Konnerudkollen Mines, Konnerud, Drammen, Buskerud, Norway, miharaite has been found as
striated, prismatic crystals associated with chalcopyrite,
sphalerite and beautiful bipyramidal
quartz
(Mindat photo).
Miharaite from the Wedelseie Adit -
Image
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