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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[Floristweb]

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.

The silver is not soft.... tried poking it with a stickpin. I haven't dropped off a sample at the University yet for identification. I may go ahead and crush all of it (except a sample to take to the University) I'll let ya know if I get anything good out of it.

 

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