| Bezsmertnovite | |
|---|---|
| General | |
| Category | Telluride mineral |
| Formula (repeating unit) | Au4Cu(Te,Pb) or Au4Cu(Te,Pb),Ме5Х |
| IMA symbol | Bez[1] |
| Strunz classification | 2.BA.80[2] |
| Crystal system | Orthorhombic |
| Crystal class | Sulfide |
| Identification | |
| Formula mass | 986.7750218 g/mol |
| Color | bright yellow, yellow-orange, orange, bronze yellow |
| Crystal habit | Massive |
| Mohs scale hardness | 4.5 |
| Luster | sub-metallic |
| Streak | golden, yellow, orange |
| Diaphaneity | opaque |
| Density | 16.3 (calculated) |
| Optical properties | anisotropic in neutral gray shades[3] |
| Other characteristics | IMA Status Approved (1979) |
| References | [4] |
Bezsmertnovite, less often bessmertnovite (Russian: Безсмертновит) is a very rare supergene mineral of the sulfide class, complex in composition: mixed plumbotelluride of gold, copper, iron, silver from the bilibinskite group with the calculation formula Au4Cu(Te,Pb).[1]
Discovered in 1978 at the Aginskoe gold deposit (Central Kamchatka),[5] bezsmertnovite stands out among all other ore minerals with its unusually high saturation and purity of color (orange-yellow), surpassing even gold.[6] In 1979, the new mineral was named in honor of the married couple of famous Moscow mineralogists: Vladimir and Marianna Bezsmertnaya.[4] The co-authors of the discovery were two Moscow scientists, geologist Ernst Spiridonov and mineralogist Tatiana Chvileva.[6]