Sodalite and Ussingite with Epistolite – Tunuliarfik, Ilimaussaq Complex, Greenland

Contributed by: Mark Cole
Date: Apr 4th, 2026
Locality: Tunulliarfik Fjord, Ilímaussaq complex, Kujalleq, Greenland (See on Mindat)
Size: 3.5 x 2 x 5 inches
Weight: 16.8 oz

Description:
Greenland sodalite has a striking fluorescence - probably the brightest in the world. Under longwave it is usually blinding and under SW very bright but deepens to a rusty orange color on pieces where there is a strong tenebrescence. But unlike Afghan sodalite, Greenland sodalite is usually not phosphorescent. But occasionally we run across a specimen with a strong phosphorescence.

This piece has both ussingite and sodalite that fluoresces the typical orange color. The tenebrescence after exposure to shortwave UV is remarkable. The phosphorescence is strong causing some areas of the sodalite to fluoresce white. There is even a small area of tugtupite in the upper middle. Arfvedsonite and epistolite, while quite rare minerals, are not fluorescent. The first picture shows the shortwave fluorescence while the other pictures show the other wavelengths.

Originally posted by Mark Cole on Nature's Rainbows in 2016.