Stibiotantalite

Beautifully zoned stibiotantalite crystal. From the Himalaya Mine, Gem Hill, Mesa Grande District, San Diego County, California. Sample is 1.8 x 1.5 x 0.1 cm in size. (Image courtesy Rob Lavinsky and irocks.com; unauthorized reproduction is prohibited.)

Formula: Sb(Ta, Nb)O4 Orthorhombic

Description:

Stibiotantalite is a rare mineral forming dark brown, yellow brown or reddish brown tabular crystals in complex granite pegmatites.

FLORENCE COUNTY: Falster (1992, personal communication) reports stibiotantalite as occurring in the complex pegmatites in T.39N. R.17E. which he refers to as the “Animikie Red Ace”. It is associated with a number of rare minerals, including wodginite, hambergite, huttonite, uraninite and a number of lithium-rich minerals.