Skip To Content
Go to gemstones.com homepage
Recommended searches
Gemopedia
  • Ruby
  • Sapphire
  • Emerald
  • Moissanite
  • Diamond
  • Peridot
  • Opal
  • Tanzanite
  • All Gemstones in Gemopedia
Shop Gemstones
  • Shop Jedora Gemstones
  • Shop JTV Gemstones
Videos
  • Tourmaline Mining in Brazil
  • Freshwater Pearls vs. Saltwater Pearls
  • History of Birthstones
  • Design and Wax Carving
  • Ruby Gemstone Spotlight
  • Fun Facts about Diamonds
  • Going Down A Tanzanite Mine
  • Fun Facts About Sapphire
  • All Videos
Articles
  • Gemstone Collecting
  • Gemstone Beauty
  • Gemstone Color
  • Gemstone Origins
  • Optical Properties
  • Rare Gemstone Collecting
  • Gemstone Luster
  • Phenomenal Gemstones
  • All Articles
Showcase Collections
  • Quartz Gemstones
  • Organic Gemstones
  • American Gemstones
  • Birthstones
  • Mineral Specimens
  • Colors of Tourmaline
  • All Showcases
Gemstone Discovery App
  • Download the App
About Us
  • About Us
Feedback
  • Survey
  • Gemstones Home
  • Gemopedia
  • Copper Ore

Copper Ore

Rock

By Tim Matthews, JD, FGA, GG, DGA,
CEO and President of JTV
Published: June 2014
Modified: March 2022
Copper Ore Polished Copper Ore Rough Copper Ore Jewelry
Table of Contents
  • General Information
  • Copper Ore Colors
  • Countries of Origin
  • History
  • Care
  • Related Videos

Copper is a native element and number 29 on the periodic table. Many minerals like azurite, malachite and chrysocolla are copper ores and the copper can be extracted for use in various products. Most copper is mined for electrical purposes but is also used as an alloy in brass, bronze, and with precious metals in jewelry and decorative items. The name copper comes from aes сyprium which translates to metal of Cyprus. Copper was mined on the island of Cyprus during the Roman era. The later Latin name сuprum is the origin of modern name. Most copper is mined in Chile, China, Peru, The United States, Canada, and Zambia. Remarkable copper specimens come from the Upper peninsula of Michigan, Arizona, New Mexico, Kazakhstan, and Namibia.

General Information

  • Classification
  • Optical Properties
  • Characteristic Physical Properties
  • Chemistry & Crystallography
Common Name
Copper Ore
Species
Rock
Transparency
Opaque
Optic Character
NA
Optic Sign
NA
Fluorescence
SWUV: none
LWUV: none
Pleochroism
None
Hardness
2.5-3
Streak
Copper-Red
Specific Gravity
8.940-8.950
Luster
Metallic
Fracture
Hackly
Cleavage
None
Chemical Name
Copper
Chemical Formula
Cu
Crystal System
Cubic
Chemistry Classification
Native Element

Copper Ore Colors

  • Green Copper Ore
    Green
  • Orange Copper Ore
    Orange

Countries of Origin

Niger (the); Papua New Guinea; Angola; Cambodia; Virgin Islands (British); Kazakhstan; Portugal; Greece; Latvia; Mongolia; Morocco; Unknown; Mali; Panama; Guatemala; Guyana; Iraq; Chile; Nepal; Argentina; Isle of Man; Ukraine; Zambia; India; Canada; Turkey; Belgium; Namibia; Finland; Faroe Islands (the); South Africa; Georgia; Jamaica; Peru; Germany; Tanzania, United Republic Of; Eritrea; Fiji; Viet Nam; Guinea; Somalia; Madagascar; Costa Rica; Sweden; Russian Federation (the); Poland; Bulgaria; Jordan; Nigeria; Croatia; Syrian Arab Republic; Uruguay; Timor-Leste; Switzerland; Spain; Djibouti; Azerbaijan; Cuba; Burkina Faso; Mauritania; Congo (the Democratic Republic of the); Lao People's Democratic Republic (the); Israel; Australia; Tajikistan; Estonia; Myanmar; Malaysia; Bosnia And Herzegovina; Armenia; Gabon; Austria; Korea (the Republic of); Luxembourg; Brazil; Algeria; Cabo Verde; Slovenia; Lesotho; Colombia; Ecuador; Iran (Islamic Republic of); United States of America (the); Hungary; South Sudan; Congo (the); Japan; Belarus; Taiwan (Province of China); Albania; Bolivia (Plurinational State of); New Zealand; Senegal; Italy; Antarctica; Afghanistan; Czechia; Egypt; Saudi Arabia; Pakistan; China; Ireland; Sudan (the); Slovakia; France; Serbia; Kyrgyzstan; United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (the); Romania; Dominican Republic (the); Netherlands (the); Bangladesh; Norway; Denmark; Mexico; Uganda; Zimbabwe; Philippines (the); Greenland; Indonesia

History

It is thought that the first use of native copper was between 9,000 and 5,000 B.C. in the Middle East. There is evidence that the use of copper then spread through Eastern Europe and into India. The earliest known copper artifact is a pendant from northern Iraq that dates to 8,700 B.C. A copper bead was found at Urfa-Nevali, Çori, Turkey and dates to 8,200 B.C. There is also evidence that copper was being used by the Native Americans in Michigan and Wisconsin between 6,000 and 3,000 B.C.

Care

Copper will oxidize and tarnish to green or black.

Related Videos

Instagram
Facebook
YouTube
  • About Us
  • Terms & Conditions
  • Privacy Policy
  • Sitemap
  • Contact Us
  • Request a Partner Invitation

©  America's Collectibles Network, Inc. All Rights Reserved.