Mineral · Galena group
Galena
PbS
Galena is lead sulfide, the heavy, silver-grey cubic mineral of the Tri-State district (Missouri state mineral), Illinois–Kentucky, the Viburnum Trend, Peru and Bulgaria. Perfect cubic cleavage, extreme weight and softness identify it instantly. It is the principal ore of lead and a lead hazard in handling.
| Formula | PbS |
|---|---|
| IMA status | grandfathered |
| Crystal system | Cubic |
| Mohs hardness | 2.5 |
| Group | Galena group |
| Type locality | None (known since antiquity) |
| Streak | Lead grey |
| Specific gravity | 7.5 |
| Reference list | IMA List of Minerals (RRUFF) — verify formula and status against the current list |
Handling and safety
Contains lead; wash hands, do not grind or let children mouth it.
Elsewhere
Cite this article
Stratum Strata. "Galena" (Mineral). Stratum Strata pack 2026.09, as of 2026-09-21. https://stratum.black/strata/minerals/galena. Accessed 2026-09-21.
@misc{stratum-galena,
title = {Galena},
author = {{Stratum Strata}},
howpublished = {\url{https://stratum.black/strata/minerals/galena}},
year = {2026},
note = {Mineral article, Stratum Strata pack 2026.09, as of 2026-09-21; sources: stratum, wikidata, commons. Accessed 2026-09-21.}
} Citations carry the pack version and the article's as-of date so they resolve to the same text later. The facts themselves belong to the sources listed below; cite those for the science.