Name/Title
PyriteEntry/Object ID
2023.7.44Description
About Pyrite
Formula: FeS2
As a Commodity: Iron pyrite
Colour: Pale brass-yellow
Lustre: Metallic
Hardness: 6 - 6½
Specific Gravity: 4.8 - 5Crystal
System: Isometric
Member of: Pyrite Group
Name: Named in antiquity from the Greek "pyr" for "fire", because sparks flew from it when struck with another mineral or metal. Known to Dioscorides (~50 CE) under the name "περι υληζ ιατρικηζ" which included both pyrite and chalcopyrite.
Pyrite Group.
The isometric (cubic) polymorph of orthorhombic marcasite. However, some pyrites may be trigonal (pseudo-cubic; Moëlo, 2023).
Compare UM1997-43-S:Fe.
Pyrite is a very common mineral (also one of the most common natural sulfides, and the most common disulfide), found in a wide variety of geological formations from sedimentary deposits to hydrothermal veins and as a constituent of metamorphic rocks. The brassy-yellow metallic colour of pyrite has in many cases lead to people mistaking it for Gold, hence the common nickname 'Fool's gold'. Pyrite is quite easy to distinguish from gold: pyrite is much lighter, but harder than gold and cannot be scratched with a fingernail or pocket knife.
Pyrite is commonly found to contain minor nickel, and forms a series with Vaesite, NiS2; Bravoite is a Ni-bearing variety of pyrite.
It usually contains minor cobalt too and forms a series with Cattierite, CoS2. Many pyrites contain minor As, see Arsenic-bearing Pyrite. Pb-bearing pyrite has been described by Cabral et al. (2011). It can also contain traces of other metals, including gold. Most of the foreign metal contents in pyrite can be traced back to metal nanoparticles (Deditius et al., 2011).Collection
John Morrow CollectionLocation
Location
Display Case
FS-11Room
Frieda Smith HallBuilding
Crater Rock MuseumDate
July 25, 2023