There are several nonmetallic minerals that have one direction of cleavage. They are often fairly easily differentiated on the basis of appearance. Feel free to look at each of the possibilities and pick the one that best fits your unknown mineral. With a nail or your fingernail scrape off a few small flakes. Are they very tiny flakes? If so, run your fingers over the mineral, does it feel slippery or greasy? If so CLICK HERE. If not, is the mineral a shade of dark green mineral? If so CLICK HERE. The remaining three possibilities either cleave into larger flakes or only cleave with difficulty. If the mineral cleaves in larger sheets (hint: it is nice and flat), are they silvery, light brown or colorless? If so CLICK HERE. The final mineral in this group is usually clear and colorless to chalky white . It does cleave, but nice thin flakes are rare, rather it usually makes kind of blocky pieces. If that is the case CLICK HERE. To review look for the following:

• Small flakes, slippery feel CLICK HERE
• Small green flakes CLICK HERE
• Larger, silvery or transparent flakes CLICK HERE
• Colorless to chakly white, poor cleavge perhaps a little blocky CLICK HERE

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  | COLOR | STREAK | LUSTER | CLEAVAGE | HARDNESS | CRYSTAL SHAPE | SPECIFIC GRAVITY | OTHER PROPERTIES |