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State Symbols
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Official state symbols represent the cultural heritage
and natural treasures of each state or the entire United States |
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Colorado Symbols
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Colorado State Mineral
Rhodochrosite
(MnCO3) Manganese Carbonate
Adopted on April 17, 2002
On April 17, 2002, Colorado Governor Bill Owens signed a bill passed by the General Assembly designating the Rhodochrosite as the new state mineral. While there was some debate as to whether the state mineral should be gold or silver or another mined mineral historically associated with Colorado, it was decided that the deep red to rose pink manganeze carbonate (MnCO3) mineral, Rhodochrosite, is associated internationally with the state more than any other mineral. It is found in some gold and silver ore-bearing veins. The specimen at left is the world's largest Rhodochrosite crystal, called the Alma King, which is on display at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science. It was found in the Sweet Home Mine near Alma (Park County), Colorado.
Rhodochrosite (whose name means rose-colored) is a very attractive mineral with an absolutely one-of-a-kind, beautiful color. Although it can be an ore of manganese, it is its ornamental and display specimen qualities that make it a very popular mineral. The color of a single crystal can just astound the observer with its vivid pink-rose color that seems to be transmitted out of the crystal as if lit from within.
Physical Characteristics
- Color is red to pink, sometimes almost white, yellow and brown.
- Luster is vitreous to resinous.
- Transparency: Crystals are transparent to translucent.
- Crystal System is trigonal; bar 3 2/m.
- Crystal Habits include the rhombohedrons and scalahedrons with rounded or curved faces that can obscure the crystal shape. Some crystals can be flattened to a bladed habit and these are sometimes aggregated into rosettes or minute crystals into spherules. Also botryoidal, globular, stalactitic, layered, nodular, vein-filling and granular. Twinning is somewhat common forming penetration twins and contact twins similar to calcite's twins.
- Cleavage is perfect in three directions forming rhombohedrons.
- Fracture is uneven.
- Hardness is 3.5 - 4.
- Specific Gravity is approximately 3.5 (above average)
- Streak is white.
- Other Characteristics: Pink and white banding in massive forms, non-fluorescence and specimens effervesce easily with dilute acids.
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State Symbols
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State symbols represent things that are special to a
particular state.
symbol \ˈsim-bəl\
noun
Etymology:
in sense 1, from Late Latin symbolum, from Late Greek symbolon, from Greek, token, sign; in
other senses from Latin symbolum token, sign, symbol, from Greek symbolon, literally, token
of identity verified by comparing its other half, from symballein to throw together,
compare, from syn- + ballein to throw — more at devil
Date: 15th century
1: Something that represents something else by association, resemblance, or
convention, especially a material object used to represent something invisible.
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