Eucryptite and Scheelite - Xianghualing Mine, China
Contributed by: Mark Cole
Date: Apr 10th, 2026
Locality: Xianghualing Mine, Xianghualing Sn-polymetallic ore field, Linwu Co., Chenzhou, Hunan, China (See on Mindat)
Size: 3.5 x 1.5 x 3.5
Weight: 12.9 oz
Description:
At the Tucson show one year a friend and I purchased a couple of small specimens of hsianghualite. It was fluorescent, a beautiful saturated red - almost like tugtupite. The mine was given as the Xianghualing Mine in Hunan. After a few attempts I finally made contact with a mineral collector over there who was interested in learning about fluorescent minerals and willing to travel. I taught him how to prospect with a UV light (even sent him one), told him where to go and what to look for - even funded his explorations (we explored many places in China). I sent him to prospect for some of this material from the Xianghualing mine. He found a few pieces and sent them over to me, I promptly began marketing them as hsianghualite. As time went on, we grew suspicious. I sent some pieces out for IDs and G. Waychunas finally confirmed what we suspected - it was eucryptite. I offered everyone who had purchased it as hsianghualite a refund, but nobody took me up on it. The combination of bright eucryptite and scheelite was just too beautiful to send back. I got a few more shipments, then sadly, things didn’t work out and I lost my contact.
These pieces have wonderfully bright red eucryptite (at first thought to be Hsianghualite) along with bright blue scheelite. Eucryptite is fluorescent a vibrant red under shortwave UV - slightly darker hue when compared to tugtupite.
Originally posted by Mark Cole on Nature's Rainbows in 2017.
Summary of luminescence responses:
Eucryptite (Mindat) (RRUFF)
- Fluorescence under Shortwave (254nm Lamp/Mercury) UV light: Red
- Fluorescence under Shortwave (254nm Lamp/Mercury) UV light: Blue