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Is it grey/silver coloured AND rubs off on paper? Then its one of these two. If not, scroll down...
Is it grey/silver coloured AND rubs off on paper? Then its one of these two. If not, scroll down...
Galena
Galena
You can identify galena by its cubic shape. It is full of lead - not pencil lead, but lead used in fishing weights.
Graphite
Graphite
Graphite is a very soft mineral. It does not form cubic shapes, but this mineral is the one used in pencil "lead". Although it does not have any of the mineral lead in it.
It is magnetic OR gold in colour, then it must be these two:
It is magnetic OR gold in colour, then it must be these two:
Pyrite
Pyrite
Also called fools gold, pyrite is gold in colour. You can distinguish it from the mineral gold by rubbing it on sandpaper or ceramic. Pyrite will leave a BLACK streak behind. Real gold will leave a yellow streak behind.
Magnetite or Hematite
Magnetite or Hematite
Both of these have Iron in them. Magnetite is very magnetic, while Hematite is weakly magnetic. If a magnet sticks to your rock and stays there, it is most likely Magnetite.
If you identified one of the above minerals, please enter it into the survey below:
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