Bruce, Archibald

Name. After Archibald Bruce (1777-1818), an early American mineralogist, who first described the species. Nemaliie (more correctly nematolite) is from vijna, thread, in allusion to the fibrous structure. 

Some Famous American Zinc Mines. In 1810 Dr. Archibald Bruce analyzed a new orange-red mineral from Fianklin Furnace, Sussex County, New Jersey, and found it to be zinc oxide containing a little manganese. This mineral is now known as zincite (100,101,102). 

Brucite, which was named after Archibald Bruce (1777-1818) in 1824, who discovered it in Hoboken, New Jersey, occurs typically as tabular crystals. Less commonly it can occur in acicular, fibrous, and scaly form. Its color can range from white, pale green, gray, gray-blue, and blue. It can also have a transparent, pearly, waxy, or vitreous appearance see Table 2.5, which displays a variety of physical properties of brucite. 

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