Mineral description : Gold

Alluvial gold from Bjurholm, Västerbotten.
In copper sulfate.
Gold from the Björkdal mine.
It's visible in the bigger picture as yellow dots on the pyrite.
Gold in quartz from the Björkdal mine.
As filling in fractures.

Mineral class Elements : Copper-silver-gold group
Chemical formula Au
Crystal system Cubic
Habitus As grains, crack fillings and jugs. Rarely as octaedric crystals.
Cleavage None, malleable.
Hardness 2.5-3
Density 19.3
Color Yellow, without tarnish.
Streak Yellow shiny.
Luster Metallic
Description  
Occurance Primarily in quartz veins of hydrothermal origin, but also as magmatic and metamorphic rock.
Concentrated in alluvial deposits.
Associates Quarts, sulfides.
Notes Soluble in aqua regia, not in nitric acid.
Norhern Sweden is the biggest gold producer in Europe.
Locations
  • Boliden mine, Västerbotten. Sometimes as visual flakes.
  • Björkdalsgruvan, Västerbotten. In quarts veins together with tsumoite.
  • Falu mine. With Pb-Bi-Sb sulfides, sometimes visible.
  • Ädelfors mine, Jönköping län. In quartz veins.
  • Fridhems mine, Gällivare, Norrbotten. Together with zeolites in quartz-calcite veins.

To elements index.
Mineral group index.
Main index.

If you have some questions, suggestions or comments you are welcome to write me a line or two.


axelsson@acc.umu.se
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Last changed : 1998-03-07