Fluorescent/Phosphorescent Calcite from a Little-Known Midwestern Location- Bedford, Indiana

Contributed by: Chris Clemens
minID: DU6-JVV
Date: Apr 23rd, 2026
Locality: State Route 37 roadcut, Bedford, Lawrence County, Indiana, USA (See on Mindat)
Size: 33 x 26 x 37 mm
Weight: 28 g

Description:
This milky white calcite cleavage fragment was collected in 2016 from a roadcut along Indiana State Route 37 in Bedford, Indiana, very near to the location of the specimens described in my two previous posts regarding blue and green phosphorescent fluorite from the same area. This calcite shows a Terlingua-type fluorescent response, with blue/pink triangular zones of fluorescence seen under shortwave UV with lasting blue/white phosphorescence. A dim pink response is seen under longwave UV (not shown).

Originally posted by Chris Clemens on Nature's Rainbows in 2016.

Fluorescence under shortwave UV light.

Afterglow after exposure to shortwave UV light.

Normal light.

View of the Indiana Route 37 roadcut where the specimen was collected at the north end of Bedford.

Summary of luminescence responses:

Calcite (Mindat) (RRUFF)

• Fluorescence under Shortwave (254nm Lamp/Mercury) UV light: Blue
• Afterglow after exposure to Shortwave (254nm Lamp/Mercury) UV light: Blue