Home > Type Localities II – October 30 > MS0817 Bikitaite
Bikitaite - Sold
- Bikita
- Masvingo Province
- Zimbabwe
- 5.5 by 4.8 by 2.2 cm – Miniature specimen (fits into a 5 cm cube)
Bikitaite is a hydrated lithium aluminum silicate. Hurlbut (1957) named the mineral mineral after the village of Bikita, nearby the discovery site. The mineral is actually a zeolite (Coombs et al. 1997). Bikitaite here forms bladed crystals to 2.7 cm, partly replaced by quartz. This specimen was part of the personal collection of Ralph Merrill, proprietor of the prolific mail order business Minerals Unlimited, obtained in 1977 from Al McGuinness.
