Mineral Factbook

Alabaster

Rock / aggregate

Alabaster is fine-grained massive gypsum rock. It is a polycrystalline material rather than a single mineral species; its dominant component is Gypsum.

Photos

Alabaster specimen photo
Hannes Grobe · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons
Alabaster specimen photo
Hannes Grobe · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons
Alabaster specimen photo
Djennane Taoufik · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons
Alabaster specimen photo
Djennane Taoufik · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons

About Gypsum

Full reference data — crystallography, X-ray diffraction, and cited physical properties — is on the Gypsum species page.

FormulaCa(SO4)ยท2H2O
Hardness (Mohs)2
Density (calculated)2.31
Crystal systemmonoclinic
Streakwhite