Name:
Calcite		 Origin of name:
from Latin calcx, or calcis, meaning lime or limestone		 Chemical composition:
CaCO3
Calcite is the most common mineral in the Earth's crust, after quartz. It occurs as rhombohedral and scalenohedral crystals, in many different combinations, but also as massive or compact rocks - chalk, limestone and marble.

Clear rhombs of calcite, known as "Iceland Spar", demonstrate a property known as double refraction; objects viewed through the crystal show two images (as shown in this picture). This is because light travels through the calcite crystal at different speeds in different directions.

 Crystal system:
trigonal/hexagonal
Class:
Carbonates
Hardness:
3
Cleavage:
perfect
Colour:
white, colourless, grey, red, brown, green or black
Specific gravity:
2.71

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