Museum Elpidite is moderately rare at MSH, but is sometimes found in relatively large amounts. It is sometimes found as a pseudomorph of serandite crystals usually coated by a very fine dark green powdery chlorite-group mineral. Color is tan, greenish gray to white or colorless. Luster is vitreous to earthy or silky.
Fracture is splintery to uneven.
Hardness is 5. Streak is white. Distinguishing Features include the crystal habit. From the Greek elpidos , hope, alluding to the expectancy of finding other interesting minerals at the discovery locality of Narsarsuk, Greenland in 1894.