Benitoite is a rare blue barium titanium cyclosilicate mineral, found in hydrothermally altered serpentinite. It forms in low temperature, high pressure environments typical of subduction zones at convergent plate boundaries. Benitoite fluoresces under short wave ultraviolet light, appearing bright blue to bluish white in color. The more rarely seen clear to white benitoite crystals fluoresce red under long-wave UV light.
Benitoite on natrolite
Blue benitoite crystals on white natrolite, Dallas Gem Mine, San Benito Co., California, US
Benitoite crystals under UV light
Barium is a chemical element; it has symbol Ba and atomic number 56. It is the fifth element in group 2 and is a soft, silvery alkaline earth metal. Because of its high chemical reactivity, barium is never found in nature as a free element.
Barium
Oxidized barium
Sir Humphry Davy, who first isolated barium metal
Benitoite crystals on natrolite. The mineral is named for the San Benito River in San Benito County where it was first found.