Color: Bright scarlet or cinnamon red to a brick red.
Luster: Adamantine to submetallic in darker specimens.
Hardness: 2 - 2.5.
Streak: Red
Cleavage: Perfect in three directions, forming prisms.
Transparency: Crystals are translucent to transparent.
Used in: Scientific equipment, in drugs, and with tin in silvering mirrors.