Images
Formula: Ni3(Bi,Pb)2S2
Sulphosalt
Specific gravity: 8.4
Hardness: 2
Streak: Black
Colour: Pale bronze
Solubility: Soluble in concentrated nitric acid
Environments
Plutonic igneous environments
Metamorphic environments
Hydrothermal environments
Parkerite occurs in norite (Mindat) as grains in other hydrothermal
sulphides and arsenides. Associated minerals include galena,
bismuth, bismuthinite,
tetradymite, hessite,
cubanite, maucherite,
nickeline, sperrylite,
gold, chalcopyrite,
pyrrhotite, pentlandite,
siegenite and bravoite
(HOM).
Localities
There are two co-type localities, the Frood mine, McKim Township, Sudbury District, Ontario, Canada, and the Waterfall gorge,
Insizwa, Umzimvubu Local Municipality, Alfred Nzo District Municipality, Eastern Cape, South Africa.
At the Great Slave Lake, Northwest Territories, Canada, parkerite occurs as small inclusions in
nickeline and is associated with native
bismuth
(CM 9.610-612).
At the Frood mine, McKim Township, Sudbury District, Ontario, Canada (one of the type localities), Parkerite is found in
small stringers and veinlets
in the extremities of the ore-body, where it occurs sparingly in association with
galena, native bismuth,
bismuthinite, tetradymite,
hessite, cubanite,
maucherite, nickeline,
sperrylite and gold, together with the
prevailing chalcopyrite, pyrrhotite
and pentlandite. The association with galena
is particularly persistent and characteristic. As a group these minerals occur around the margins of the main
copper-nickel-iron sulphides;
parkerite has not been found in the central part of the larger sulphide mass
(AM 28.343-355).
At the Langis Mine, Casey Township, Cobalt Area, Cobalt-Gowganda region, Timiskaming District, Ontario, Canada, the sulphides
consist of two sub-assemblages, one of bravoite and
marcasite intimately intergrown and containing associated
chalcopyrite and sphalerite, and the
other of bismuthinite,
cobaltpentlandite, siegenite,
parkerite, bravoite and late bravoite.
The parkerite occurs as a component of sulphide grains within arsenides. The sulphide grains consist of
bismuthinite, parkerite, native
bismuth, cobaltpentlandite,
siegenite and bravoits. The parkerite
generally surrounds native bismuth, and is either intergrown with, or adjacent to,
bismuthinite. In some places it is surrounded by
cobaltpentlandite and siegenite,
and in other places it is adjacent to these minerals. The parkerite grains are up to 0.5 mm size
(CM 9.610-612).
At Waterfall gorge, Insizwa, Umzimvubu Local Municipality, Alfred Nzo District Municipality, Eastern Cape, South Africa (one
of the type localities), The parkerite occurs in nickeliferpus deposits and is associated with
galena, native bismuth,
nickeline, maucherite,
pentlandite, chalcopyrite and
sperrylite
(CM 9.610-612).
The North Mine, Devon United Mines, Peter Tavy, West Devon, Devon, England, UK, is situated within the metamorphic aureole of the
Dartmoor Granite with the country rock comprising Carboniferous
shale, metasediments and greenstone.
Parkerite has been identified as grains up to 50 microns across in
quartz-fluorite veinstone. Associated
minerals include
sphalerite, ullmannite,
bismuth, bismite,
gersdorffite and cassiterite
(M&M 25.19-22).
Back to Minerals