Pyrite, also known as fools gold, is a mineral with a brass-yellow or silver-metallic color. Learn about its uses, properties, worth, and how it forms as cubes and crystals. The mineral pyrite (/ ˈpaɪraɪt / PY-ryte), [6] or iron pyrite, also known as fool's gold, is an iron sulfide with the chemical formula Fe S 2 (iron (II) disulfide).
Pyrite is the most abundant sulfide mineral. [7] Pyrite cubic crystals on marl from Navajún, La Rioja, Spain (size: 95 by 78 millimetres [3.7 by 3.1 in], 512 grams [18.1 oz]; main crystal: 31 millimetres [1.2 in] on edge. Pyrite is a yellow to golden metallic mineral with a brilliant luster and a hardness of 6-6.5.
It is often confused with gold or fool's gold, but it is not valuable for its own sake. Learn about its geologic, economic and environmental significance. The colors of rainbow pyrite can shine in hues of gold, green, pink, and blue, depending on how light interacts with the thin layers on its surface.
When light hits these layers, it bends and separates into various colors, much like a rainbow. Pyrite is a brass-yellow mineral with a bright metallic luster and a chemical composition of iron sulfide. It is often called "Fool's Gold" because of its similarity to gold, but it also has various uses as an ore, a gemstone, and a fire starter.
Pyrite is commonly referred to as "fool's gold." Although much lighter than gold, its brassy color and relatively high density misled many novice prospectors. Its name is derived from the Greek word pyr, meaning "fire," because it emits sparks when struck by iron. It is opaque and pale silvery yellow when fresh, turning darker and tarnishing with exposure to oxygen.
Pyrite crystals. Pyrite Colors When used as a gemstone, Pyrite tends to be a pale yellow to a brassy yellow or gold color although some can be dark gray or almost black. Superficially, when polished to a high luster, a piece of Pyrite can certainly look like a gold nugget but closer inspection will soon show up clear differences.
This Pyrite gemstone guide lists qualities of the Pyrite gem type, including stone colors, common names, meanings, gemstone hardness and more. Type Mineral Luster Metallic Hardness 6 - 6.5 > Glass Cleavage None Streak Greenish Black Color Pale Brassy Yellow Miscellaneous Cubic Crystals. Pyrite is sometimes called Fools Gold because of its similarity in color and shape to Gold.
In the old mining days, Pyrite was sometimes mistaken for Gold, as they frequently occur together, although Gold and Pyrite can very easily be distinguished by simple observation and testing of characteristics. Pyrite occurs in numerous shapes and habits. The smaller crystal aggregate s may give off a.