Cerussite

Appearance

A gorgeous lead mineral with a chequered past – it can occur in fantastic reticulated crystals, often twinned. Some of the crystals I’ve seen genuinely look rather like snowflakes.

Uses and History

Cerussite is an important ore of lead, but is also prized by collectors. Rarely, pieces are facet cut for jewellery – while they are too soft for frequent wear, the mineral does have a very high refractive index.

A long, long history, this one. We cannot attribute it all to cerussite, but white lead has been used for hundreds of years for cosmetics and paints.

White lead makeups like ‘Venetian ceruse’ were famous in the 16th century for the skin-whitening effects they had – and there is debate as to whether one user was Elizabeth I of England.

One famous user was Maria Coventry, the Countess of Coventry, who died of lead poisoning in 1760, at the age of 27.

Locales

Mineralogy

Hazards and Warnings

Toxic, lead ore. Wash hands after handling.

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

Further Reading / External Links

• https://www.mindat.org/min-934.html
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cerussite
• https://brighterworld.mcmaster.ca/articles/analysis-dying-for-makeup-lead-cosmetics-poisoned-18th-century-european-socialites-in-search-of-whiter-skin/