MERCURY. 313 



white ; it is liquid, opaque, and its lustre is splendent and metallic. 

 Its specific gravity is 13'G It is volatalize before the blow-pipe 

 at less than a red heat. It is found in small globules, disseminated 

 in the ores of mercury, and other ores that accompany them, 

 principally in rocks of the coal formation. 



Sp. 2. Native Amalgam. — Natiirliches Amalgam, IVerner ; 

 Mercure argental, Hauy ; Dodecahedral mercury, Jameson. — The 

 colour is silver-white or greyish. It occurs in plates, in small 

 globular amorphous masses, and also crystalized in rhomboidal 

 dodecahedrons. Internally it is shining, and the lustre is metallic. 

 Its specific gravity is 11 '\4. It is soft, and when cut with a knife 

 it emits a creaking sound like artificial amalgam. It consists of 

 74 parts of mercury, and 25 of silver. It is generally associated 

 with native mercury and cinnabar ; and it is found principally at 

 Moschellandsberg, in Deux-Ponts 



Sp. 3. Sulphuret of Mercury, or Cinnabar. — Zinnober, 

 IVerner; Mercure argental, Hauy — This mineral is divided by 

 Professor Jameson into two sub-species, viz. common and hepatic 

 cinnabar. In Common Cinnabar (PI. XLIV, fig. 2), the colours 

 are cochineal-red, scarlet-red, and carmine-red. It occurs massive, 

 disseminated, dendritic, in granular concretions, and also crys- 

 talized in six-sided prisms. It alternates from opaque to trans- 

 lucent ; internally shining or glimmering, with a shining or semi- 

 metallic lustre. Its fracture is fine-grained, even, conchoidal, and 

 earthy. It yields a scarlet-red shining streak. Its constituent 

 parts are mercury 84-53, sulphur 14*75 — 29'25. Klaprolh. It is 

 from this ore that most of the mercury of commerce is obtained. 

 Hepatic Cinnabar has a reddish-brown colour, passing into dark 

 lead-grey. It occurs massive, disseminated, and in globular con- 

 cretions : the lustre is glimmering and semi-metallic. It is 

 opaque ; its fracture is even or slaty ; it is easily frangible, and 

 sectile. It contains, mercury 81 - 8, sulphur 13*7, in 100 parts, 

 mixed with carbon, silica, alumina, and oxide of iron, and a trace 

 of copper. It occurs in considerable masses in slate-clay and 

 bituminous shale at Almaden, in Spain, and in Siberia. In the 

 mine of Idria, this variety is called Branderz. 



Sp. 4. Muriate of Mercury, or Horn Quicksilver. — 



