Cinnabar Mercury Gold - What do I do with this stuff...

[Floristweb]

Decided to break a rock with a hammer. These are pictures of what I think is cinnabar with loads of visible mercury. Now I'm starting to wonder if some of the silver metal I've found in the pan could be naturally amalgamated gold/mercury. If so, can I safely/easily separate it?

I've seen quite a bit of this and just discovered what it possibly is (cinnabar) when breaking rock. Not sure what to do with it. Also, does cinnabar have much if any value by itself?

I have spent very little time prospecting on our property; (if you can call it that) and am amazed by how much I have to learn.

 

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[rodoconnor]

The toenail red sure looks like cinnabar.

 

[Floristweb]

The toenail red sure looks like cinnabar.

LOL... The colors in the rock range from a deep red to a dark purple/red. had a hard time photographing it as the flash seems to mess with the color a bit. I'll try to get pictures outside later.

 

[Floristweb]

LOL... The colors in the rock range from a deep red to a dark purple/red. had a hard time photographing it as the flash seems to mess with the color a bit. I'll try to get pictures outside later.

Just took these pics to try to show the colors better using natural light near a window.

 

[dave wiseman]

https://www.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl#q=photos+of+cinnabar

 

[huntsman53]

Do you see any bubbles on the rock? I don't see any and if you have Cinnabar with Mercury, then there should be Mercury oozing out in bubbles, especially as the stone heats up. I guess it is possible that the dark reddish/brown stone is Cinnabar but if so, it is combined with Iron.

https://www.google.com/search?q=cin...PxgIV9EOMCh22cwP4#tbm=isch&q=cinnabar+mercury


Frank

 

[Floristweb]

Do you see any bubbles on the rock? I don't see any and if you have Cinnabar with Mercury, then there should be Mercury oozing out in bubbles, especially as the stone heats up. I guess it is possible that the dark reddish/brown stone is Cinnabar but if so, it is combined with Iron.

https://www.google.com/search?q=cin...PxgIV9EOMCh22cwP4#tbm=isch&q=cinnabar+mercury


Frank

Yes, there are many-many silver bubbles, even in the grey area in the center though. I zoomed in and took a screenshot to some of the pics,but I don't know if they'll show the bubbles... Here they are, we'll if this works (hope it is visible with the crummy cell-phone shot). If it is cinnabar isn't that odd in NW South Carolina?

 

[huntsman53]

I can't really tell much from the latest pics. Try taking some pics from the side looking across where the bubbles stick up without so much magnification and maybe we can see what you see.

Since Cinnabar is a hydrothermal mineral and there were Volcanoes along much of the length of what is now called the Appalacian Mountains and the Blue Ridge Mountains, it is quite possible that Cinnabar could be found in NW South Carolina.


Frank

 

[Floristweb]

I can't really tell much from the latest pics. Try taking some pics from the side looking across where the bubble stick up without so much magnification and maybe we can see what you see.

Since Cinnabar is a hydrothermal mineral and there were Volcanoes along much of the length of what is now called the Appalacian Mountains and the Blue Ridge Mountains, it is quite possible that Cinnabar could be found in NW South Carolina.


Frank

Here are some more pics; This phone is awful and my real camera is in Nashville, ugh. Maybe they'll show up some in these pics. Thanks for your help... Mr. Rasmussen from the South Carolina Gem and mineral society is going to take a look at when I can get him a sample. Ilyy get in the creek and pan out some more of the silver metal I've panned too so he can help determine if it's amalgamated gold (I doubt it is, but if so I'll have to learn how to deal with it) .... trying to get pics in the silver part of the rock because it seems to show up better with the camera.

 

[bobw53]

Here are some more pics; This phone is awful and my real camera is in Nashville,

If you haven't already, see if you have the "macro" function in there.. Usually looks like a flower... If you don't, and you haven't already, zoom as
far in as you can, and back the phone away, seems to give the best pics of small stuff.

 

[huntsman53]

Yeah, try what bobw53 stated. It looks as if there are some bubbles but I still can't really tell. On the chance you do have Cinnabar with Mercury oozing out of it, I hope you are taking precautions to protect yourself and others from Mercury poisoning! You should seal the rocks away in a container with cold water to stabilize the Mercury.


Frank

 

[DizzyDigger]

I can try and sharpen/polish up a few of the pics, if it would be helpful.

 

[Floristweb]

The phone doesn't have any way to zoom and when I get too close it goes all out of focus. As soon as I get better pics I'll post them. The silver is very small, but lots of them. I washed my hands every time I've handled the stone and put it outside. Didn't know about covering it with water... Will do - Thanks for the info.

 

[Floristweb]

I can try and sharpen/polish up a few of the pics, if it would be helpful.

That might help, thanks

 

[DizzyDigger]

The Iphone 4 actually has one of the better cameras that are
available in cell phones. Better to step back a couple feet and
insure a sharp image, and then crop and process the image.

Here's 3 I had a go at:

 

[Reed Lukens]

Your best bet would be to crush some of the rock and pan it out. Make or buy a mortar and pestle if you don't have one. It is a basic prospecting tool that we all use.

 

[Floristweb]

The Iphone 4 actually has one of the better cameras that are
available in cell phones. Better to step back a couple feet and
insure a sharp image, and then crop and process the image.

Here's 3 I had a go at:

View attachment 1175538

View attachment 1175539

View attachment 1175540

I have an iPhone 4 and thought getting as close as I could was best because there is no zoom. I am taking a sample to Clemson for Id. Will post as soon as I know what it is. Mr. Rasmussen from the South Carolina Gem and mineral society suggested taking a specimen to a geologist or Clemson for I.D., his guess is some kind of garnet/red mica/silver. He hasn't heard of heard of cinnabar in South Carolina, but that it is associated with hydrothermal veins. I hope it isn't cinnabar because mercury scares me.

 

[Floristweb]

Your best bet would be to crush some of the rock and pan it out. Make or buy a mortar and pestle if you don't have one. It is a basic prospecting tool that we all use.

Afraid to crush it... just in case it does have mercury in it...

 

[GoldpannerDave]

Afraid to crush it... just in case it does have mercury in it...

If it does, just keep it all under water. Liquid metallic mercury is not a big problem; it's mercury vapor when inhaled, mercury compounds when absorbed through the skin, etc. So just be careful with it, wear latex gloves when you crush it, which you could do under water and then keep it that way if it does have mercury in it.

 

[LP13]

If it is mercury droplets then they should be liquid. Take a point of an exacto knife and see if they are liquid or solid. If they are solid it's not mercury.

Keep the stones under water if they are mercury because mercury has vapor pressure, and even though you don't notice it, mercury evaporates into the air even at room temp. Here is a quote about the element mercury:

"The element mercury is a liquid metal with a vapor pressure of 0.00185 mm at 25 degrees C (room temperature.) This corresponds to a saturation concentration in air of 20 milligrams of mercury per cubic meter of air or 2.4 ppm ."

What they don't say there is how much mercury you would need exposed to the air and how long for it to accumulate to 2.4ppm. I expect it would take a fair amount of mercury (lots of surface area) and quite a bit of time in a room with no air exchange to get to those levels. However erring on the side of caution is generally the best policy.

Swallowed mercury goes right through you. Breathed in it doesn't. 2.4ppm is pretty low but since mercury is cumulative 0ppm is better.

You could always set up a retort and then you would know for sure. Be careful if you set one up as they can be dangerous (depending on design) if they suck water in when you shut it down. I am sure you can get 100 different do-it-yourself pages on the internet. Just google Mercury Retort and pay close attention to any precautions they include.

But your rock having mercury droplets in it is fairly likely as cinnabar can precipitate liquid mercury in the oxide zone of the rock (rock near the surface that gets exposed to air.)

I once visited a mercury mine in southern Oregon. The cinnabar around there was very greasy feeling and very red and stained your fingers red when you handled it.