All About Cinnabar – Uses, Properties, Color, and Worth

What is Cinnabar?

Cinnabar is a mercury sulfide that is formed by being deposited into surrounding rock veins by hydrothermal circulation of water near recent volcanic activity.  Cinnabar is found as massive, granular, or an earthy deposit in its host rock and at times will also form as crystals…

This mineral has also been known to form around alkaline hot springs.  A temperature of around 200 degrees Celsius at shallower depths in the earth are typical for the formation of this mineral.

Many places that extract minerals high in mercury will likely have cinnabar available.  One of the most notable places in the world to find cinnabar is Almadén, Spain.  This location is known to have produced some very nice cinnabar in its rare crystal form.

Other sulfide minerals in association with cinnabar are pyrite, marcasite, stibnite, and realgar.  Minerals that can be found mixed in with cinnabar include, quartz, dolomite, barite, and calcite.

Many may not know that cinnabar comes as two other different varieties called Matacinnabar and hypercinnabar.

What is Cinnabar used for?

Cinnabar is used primarily as an ore of mercury.  Cinnabar has been used as a pigment for the variety of red colors it can produce, as well as uses as gemstones in jewelry.  The common uses from the mercury extracted from cinnabar are light bulbs, emergency sprinklers, and don’t forget the thermometer.

For many years cinnabar has been used for its mercury content.  Cinnabar was placed into distillation constructs or structures to extract the mercury.  By this heating and evaporation and then cooling and condensing, the liquid mercury could be collected and moved.  This form of mercury obtained the name “Quicksilver”.  

The Chinese often used vermilion red, or “Chinese Red”, pigments for furniture, decorations, building structures, jewelry, and household items.  By no surprise this red came from the pigments obtainable from cinnabar.  Many other cultures in the past utilized cinnabar in this very same fashion.

As time has gone on, and the discovery of the toxicity of mercury, these uses have greatly declined though there are still some that use pigments obtained from cinnabar anyway.

What is the color of Cinnabar?

Cinnabar color is cochineal red to brownish red and sometimes gray.  One of the best features about cinnabar color while in crystal form, is its beautiful scarlet red colors.  These deep red crystal specimens of cinnabar are very appealing to look at and can be very highly sought after.

What is Cinnabar worth?

Cinnabar worth will differ based on what form it takes.  As a specimen, the price of cinnabar can come under $10 per specimen.  If you wish a specimen of cinnabar in crystal form, you can expect the price to push into the $100’s as crystal sizes increase and color quality deepens.

The greatest cost I have seen involving cinnabar is if you wish to purchase older Chinese relics such as vases, pots, jewelry, and décor.  A pair of 19^th century Chinese carved vases, painted with cinnabar pigments, could run you around $6000.00.

You might want to stick to obtaining cinnabar specimens rather than some of the applications they were once used for. If you are not a wealthy individual, don’t worry, you can still obtain some nice looking specimens for a good price.

Cinnabar vs Metacinnabar vs Hypercinnabar

The most notable difference between cinnabar, metacinnabar, and hypercinnabar is their crystal systems.  Though they all express the same chemical formula of mercury sulfide (HgS), cinnabar is a trigonal crystal system, where metacinnabar is cubic and hypercinnabar is hexagonal.  Other differences do exist…

Metacinnabar is formed though lower temperatures than that of cinnabar which gives it the cubic crystal format.  Additionally the color of metacinnabar will be a metallic grayish black and its streak will be black as well.

Hypercinnabar is formed though higher temperatures than that of cinnabar which gives it the very rare hexagonal crystal system.   Hypercinnabar can be red, purple to black in color and its streak is a reddish black.  The crystals on hypercinnabar will only be visible through a microscope.

How can I identify cinnabar?

Cinnabar can be identified by its red and sometimes more orangish color. It can also be identified by a scratch test with your fingernail or a penny. If it scratches, you may have cinnabar. Beware of molding lines and bubbles seen within the sample of cinnabar as those are identifiers of a fake specimen, jewelry, or other items.

If you are purchasing cinnabar in some form, be warry of whom you are buying from. Many people out there are attempting to sell cinnabar that is in reality a plastic fake.

One great way I have heard to check if your cinnabar is real is to do a nail polish test. Put some nail polish on a cotton q-tip, then gently rub a small area of the cinnabar. If the cotton ends up with some reddish hue on it, then it is likely real. Clean the area you rubbed with a little bit of soap and water to remove any left over nail polish.

Is Cinnabar Poisonous?

Cinnabar is poisonous and can be toxic to human beings.  Due to cinnabars content of mercury, it is wise to take precautions while working with it so as to avoid any poisonous effects.  Too much exposure to mercury has been known to cause shaking, loss of senses, and even death.

Past data shows extracted mercury from cinnabar through heating and cooling, was very toxic to the workers due to the fumes.  Years ago it was considered a death sentence if you were assigned, as a convict or slave, to the mines at Almadén, Spain.  The shortened life expectancy working in the mine was clearly noted.

You can touch cinnabar, but you may need to take some precautions while doing so depending on what you are doing. If you do touch cinnabar, especially for any longer amounts of time, you may want to consider washing your hands.  If you touch a lot of cinnabar, you can always wear gloves and don’t touch around your face.

People talk about how cinnabar is harmless if touching it. They mention cinnabar is difficult to dissolve in water, which is fairly true. However our bodies do not secret only water, but also salts and oils. So keep that in mind as we move into the next topic about cinnabar.   

Is wearing Cinnabar jewelry safe or dangerous?

Wearing cinnabar jewelry can be safe when applied to wood jewelry as a stain, and then protective lacquers are applied. Other cinnabar jewelry are not really dangerous while worn. Some do advise not to wear cinnabar next to the skin as small amounts can be absorbed.

Many have said that cinnabar is safe to wear as jewelry. If you decide to purchase and wear cinnabar, please take note that in some cases while wearing cinnabar jewelry, contact with the skin could result in a rash. Obviously a rash is hardly life threatening, but a rash is no fun either.

If you have small children, you will want to take precautions with your cinnabar jewelry, specimens, and items. Kids put things in their mouth and even swallow them. I can imagine that this would be extremely harmful to kids.

Where is Cinnabar found?

Cinnabar can be found in the following locations around the world; China, Italy, Spain, and in the USA; Arkansas, California, Nevada, Oregon, and Texas.