Cumengeite Rock Star

Cumengeite – a Total Crystal Rock Star!

A few months ago, I read somewhere online that there was a naturally occurring star shaped crystal. But the person who spoke of it forgot it’s name (*talk about excitement buzz kill!). Then last week, while surfing through the crystal candy on Pinterest, I came across a photo of the unicorn itself! The Cumengeite crystal! This rare copper and lead chloride beauty is amazing in the fact that it’s forms this shape naturally! (*Standing ovation to Mother Earth!!*)

Here are some cool facts about Cumengeite:

Color: Indigo Blue
Moh’s Hardness: 2.5
Crystal System: Tetragonal
Empirical Formula: Pb₂₁Cu₂₀Cl₄₂(OH)₄₀ · 6H₂O
This six pointed star with twinned sixling symmetry is a rare delicate halide. A close relative to Boleite. This star is formed when four pyramids cover a Boleite cube to create a 3D star shape!
Found just before the 1900’s by a French mining explorer, Edouard Cumenge.
Cumengeites are found in Mexico in the Boleó District in the Baja California Sur region.
Cumengeite is more rare than boleite from this locality, with only about one cumengeite found per several hundred boleite specimens.
Cumengeite shaped stars are rare to find in complete whole, and when they are found whole, they are said to be very sharp and very bright blue. The ones shown in the featured photo above are around only 1cm!
A larger specimen can be found in the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History and can be seen in the photo below. The left one is 12cm. Notice how the ones attached to the rock matrix are not well formed. This is the case with most of the cumengeite found. If you happen to own a complete star, let us know and share your photo on our Facebook page!

Although the cumengeite crystal is a six pointed star, it does remind me of a Merkaba star? What do you think? If you know of any other crystal shaped stars formed naturally, please share!

Sources:

http://www.mindat.org/min-6894.html
http://fr.academic.ru/dic.nsf/frwiki/476254
http://old.irocks.com/2011_Worldwide_Mineral_Specimens-5.html?page=6
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Nb-C__IiyCU/UsszDw5JGII/AAAAAAAAFfE/5PD9FENcjuM/s1600/cumengite.jpg