Brochantite always occurs in an intensely deep green color. It is almost exclusively in groups of small radiating needles, and often found together with the similar mineral Cyanotrichite, which has a deep blue color. The combination of bright green Brochantite and bright blue Cyanotrichite creates a beautiful and contrasting specimen when found together.
Brochantite was named in honor of French mineralogist and geologist André-Jean-François-Marie Brochant de Villiers (1772-1840). Brochant de Villiers was a professor of geology and mineralogy in the École des Mines in France, as well as its first pupil.