Painite is a very rare borate mineral. It was first found in Myanmar (Burma) by British mineralogist and gem dealer Arthur C.D. Pain who misidentified it as ruby, until it was discovered as a new gemstone in the 1950s. When it was confirmed as a new mineral species, the mineral was named after him.[
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The chemical makeup of painite contains calcium, zirconium, boron, aluminium, and oxygen (CaZrAl9O15(BO3)). The mineral also contains trace amounts of chromium and vanadium, which are responsible for Painite's typically orange-red to brownish-red color,[ Painite history at Caltech. Minerals.gps.caltech.edu. Retrieved on 2012-05-28.] similar to topaz. The mineral's rarity is due to zirconium and boron rarely interacting with each other in nature. The crystals are naturally hexagonal, but may also be euhedral or orthorhombic. They also may have no crystalline structure, but usually are accompanied by a crystalline structure. Until late 2004, only two had been cut into faceted gemstones.[ Ten gemstones that are rarer than diamond. io9.com]
Discovery and occurrence
Extensive exploration in the area surrounding Mogok, which comprises a large part of the extremely small region the mineral is known to exist in, has identified several new painite occurrences that have been vigorously explored resulting in several thousand new available painite specimens.[ Painite history at Caltech. Minerals.gps.caltech.edu. Retrieved on 2012-05-28.]
File:Painite-266170.jpg|Striated, euhedral painite crystal (size: 0.9×0.8×0.7 cm)
File:Painite-255206.jpg|Corundum var. ruby on a large painite crystal, Mogok, Burma. (size: 3.7×3.1×2.3 cm)
See also
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