Celestite

Celestite is a gorgeous blue mineral, often used as an ore of Strontium. It is also referred to as Celestine.

We offer a range of Celestite pieces, including tumbled Celestite, rough pieces, and more.

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Appearance, Uses and History

Celestite is a blue mineral,  often crystalline. It is also referred to as Celestine.

It is used as an ore for the element Strontium, used in the production of fireworks and pyrotechnics, as well as various alloys of other metals.

There is a cave in Ohio that has become somewhat of a tourist attraction due to its Celestite crystals; the cave measures 10 metres deep and contains crystals up to 1 meter wide!

Locales

Excellent specimens of Celestine can be found in various countries, including Austria,  France, Germany, Libya, Madagascar, Mexico, Morocco, Poland, Russia, Slovakia, Tajikistan,  and Turkey.

Most Eurasian countries have Celestite occurrences – sometimes in pale colours, sometimes with unusual colours – yellow, green, red.

Mineralogy

Chemistry
Strontium Sulfate, sometimes with Barium. SrSO4.
Colours and Variations
Most specimens on the market are blue or pale blue, but colourless, white, grey, yellow, green and orange specimens can be found.
Streak
White
Luster
Vitreous, pearly
Fracture
Uneven
Crystal habit
Prismatic or tabular crystals, or masses of these. Crystal growth can also occur in geodes. Other forms include massive, radiating, grainy and botryoidal.
Mohs hardness
3 – 3.5
Specific Gravity
3.9 – 4.0
Easiest testing method
May be tricky to differentiate from Baryte; the easiest testing method is to burn some dust from the specimen in a well ventilated area. Barite dust will turn a flame green, Celestite dust will turn a flame red.
A specific density test is another good option and non-destructive.
Common Treatments

Hazards and Warnings

Celestite is comprised of Strontium, which sounds scary – but it isn’t harmful in this form – unless ingested or inhaled.

Almost all rocks, minerals (and, frankly, almost all other substances on earth) can produce toxic dust when cutting, which can cause serious respiratory conditions including silicosis.

When cutting or polishing rocks, minerals, shells, etc, all work should be done wet to minimise the dust, and a suitable respirator or extraction system should be used.

Translations

Arabic:

Hindi:

  • सेलेस्टीन

Portuguese:

  • celestino

Bengali:

  • সেলাস্টাইট
  • সেলস্টাইন

Indonesian:

Punjabi:

  • ਸੇਲਸਟਾਈਟ

English:

  • celestite
  • celestine

Italian:

Russian:

  • Целестин
  • Целестит

French:

  • célestine
  • célestite

Japanese:

  • セレスタイト

Spanish:

  • celestita
  • celestina

German:

  • Celestit
  • Celestin

Korean:

  • 셀레스 타이트

Thai:

Gujurati:

  • સેલિસ્ટાઇટ

Mandarin and Traditional Chinese:

  • 天青石

Urdu:

  • سیلسٹین
  • سیلسٹائٹ

Further Reading / External Links