Hackmanite (tenebrescent sodalite) 9.4g fluorescent

A blocky hackmanite specimen with a pale lavender-mauve hackmanite zone concentrated in the center and lower portion of the piece, framed by pale cream-white host rock above and a calcite-rich zone at the base. In white light the hackmanite reads as a soft, muted lavender against the surrounding pale matrix, with the calcite at the base appearing bright white. After UV exposure the hackmanite zone deepens to a clear purple-violet while the pale host rock above remains largely unchanged, making the mineral boundary more visually distinct. Under longwave UV (365nm) the hackmanite fluoresces strong orange-yellow, while the calcite-rich zone at the base contributes a separate white-pink glow from a different mineral phase.

Tenebrescence is hackmanite's reversible photochromic shift from white or pale grey in darkness to pink or violet under UV or sunlight, bleaching back in ordinary light without limit. The calcite component visible at the base in the UV photo is a separate mineral with its own fluorescence, typical of Afghan hackmanite specimens where the host rock contains multiple mineral phases each responding differently to UV. The visible separation between the orange hackmanite zones and the white-pink calcite glow under 365nm provides a clear illustration of how multiple minerals coexist within the same host rock. From Badakhshan, Afghanistan.

• Stone type: Natural hackmanite (tenebrescent sodalite)
• Weight: 9.4g
• Size: 24x19x17mm
• Color: Pale lavender (white light); purple (after UV)
• Fluorescence (365nm): Strong orange
• Cut: Rough
• Clarity: Opaque
• Treatment: Untreated
• Origin: Afghanistan

Natural hackmanite, tenebrescent sodalite, Afghanistan, sold loose.