Home > Kalahari Manganese Field – March 18 > MS0901 Datolite

Datolite - Sold


Datolite is a calcium silicate borate mineral originally found in Norway (Klaproth, 1806). The mineral has monoclinic symmetry, and is related to bakerite and gadolinite. The mineral is nominally a calcium borosilicate. In the Kalahari Manganese Field, manganese is a ubiquitious element, and it finds its way into the crystal structures of normally manganese free minerals. In this case, manganese imparts a pale pink color to the datolite. The datolite crystals are somewhat milky, but generally more transparent to translucent and reach 8 mm on this specimen. The crystals have stacked to form a stalactite above a a base of fine crystals. The luster is excellent for the species. This specimen suffers from micro-chipping on some of the datolite crystals, including a chipped crystal on the top of the stalactite. While not noticeable when displayed, the specimen condition does reduce the price significantly for such an attractive and unuusal piece.