How can you identify Danburite?

Compare several properties rather than relying on colour alone. This entry records colour: Colorless, pale yellow, pink; lustre: Vitreous; streak: White; Mohs hardness: 7-7.5; cleavage: Poor; crystal system: Orthorhombic; transparency: Transparent to translucent. Confirm an important identification with additional field tests or qualified laboratory work.

What is Danburite commonly confused with?

Danburite may be confused with Topaz, Quartz, Barite. Compare multiple diagnostic properties because colour and surface appearance can overlap.

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Danburite identification and geology

Calcium borosilicate forming colorless to pale yellow prismatic crystals resembling topaz. An underappreciated gemstone. Color: Colorless, pale yellow, pink. Luster: Vitreous. Streak: White. Cleavage: Poor. Hardness: 7-7.5. Transparency: Transparent to translucent. Crystal system: Orthorhombic. Chemical formula: CaB₂Si₂O₈. Specific gravity: 2.97-3.02. Formation: Forms in contact metamorphic zones and in boron-rich skarns. Common geological settings: Mexico, Myanmar, Japan, USA Danbury, CT ; found in skarns and metamorphic rocks. Common look-alikes and related entries: Topaz, Quartz, Barite.

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Sources, scope & corrections

These authoritative resources support category-level nomenclature, terminology, identification methods, and safety. When a specimen-specific safety warning appears, the public-health source listed here directly supports that precaution. They are not line-by-line citations for every other property on this entry, and natural specimens vary.

Editorial owner: GeoMiner
Last updated: 2026-03-30T14:37:36.673701+00:00
Review status: Published; not independently peer-reviewed

IMA–CNMNC List of Mineral Names — International Mineralogical Association. Official mineral-name, nomenclature, and classification records.
Mineral ID Key — Mineralogical Society of America. Physical-property identification methods, repeat-testing guidance, and limitations.

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Common questions

What is Danburite?: Calcium borosilicate forming colorless to pale yellow prismatic crystals resembling topaz. An underappreciated gemstone.
How can you identify Danburite?: Compare several properties rather than relying on colour alone. This entry records colour: Colorless, pale yellow, pink; lustre: Vitreous; streak: White; Mohs hardness: 7-7.5; cleavage: Poor; crystal system: Orthorhombic; transparency: Transparent to translucent. Confirm an important identification with additional field tests or qualified laboratory work.
How does Danburite form?: Forms in contact metamorphic zones and in boron-rich skarns.
Where is Danburite commonly found?: Mexico, Myanmar, Japan, USA Danbury, CT ; found in skarns and metamorphic rocks.
What is Danburite commonly confused with?: Danburite may be confused with Topaz, Quartz, Barite. Compare multiple diagnostic properties because colour and surface appearance can overlap.

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Danburite identification and geology

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Sources, scope & corrections

Common questions