Common rock-forming minerals
These are specimens of minerals from the University of Auckland's collection. Along with the common rock-forming minerals, we have included apatite, corundum, diamond, fluorite, topaz and talc to illustrate minerals used in Moh's Scale of Hardness.
Click on either a thumbnail, or the name in the list at the side, for details and larger photographs of each mineral.
![]() apatite |
![]() augite |
![]() biotite |
![]() calcite |
![]() chlorite |
![]() corundum |
![]() diamond |
![]() fluorite |
![]() garnet |
![]() gypsum |
![]() hornblende |
![]() ilmenite |
![]() magnetite |
![]() muscovite |
![]() olivine |
![]() orthoclase |
![]() plagioclase |
![]() pyrite |
![]() quartz |
![]() talc |
![]() topaz |