Quartz is a form of silicon dioxide - SiO2. Many gemstones are colored forms of quartz such as amethyst (purple) and citrine (golden or yellow). This section will cover the colorless quartz (somethimes called rock crystal), colorless quartz with golden needles (rutilated quartz), and colorless quartz with pytire crystals.
Colorless quartz (without the golden needles of rutlitated quartz) is a common mineral. Large crystals used to make gemstones are more scarce. Large quartz crystals are used to make large, attractive, and impressive gemstones.
Rutilated quartz is quartz (usually colorless quartz) with a number of golden needles of rutile running through it. While the objective of most gemstones is to get as little inclusions as possible, with rutilated quartz one seeks interesting inclusions and interesting cuts. Many of these gemstones are very beautiful and each one is essentially unique. There also are a few very scarce examples of quartz with iron pyrite inclusions that are attractive and interesting.
Quartz has a hardness of 7 and a density of 2.65 (values for diamond are 10 and 3.52, respectively).
|
|
|
Three Very Scarce Examples of Quartz with PyriteThese three exampels of quartz with pyrite inclusions are the only examples we have ever seen. They are very bright and attractive examples of fancy cut gemstones with the added interest of the unusual pyrite crystals suspended inside. This is a very scarce quartz variety.
Extra Large Fancy Diamond (Kite) Shaped Cut
|
|
| Table of Contents | |||
| Gem Home Page |  |
||
| Exceptional Gems | |||
| Amethyst | |||
| Aquamarine | |||
| Beryl (Emerald, Aquamarines) | |||
| Chalcedony (Agate, Jasper) | |||
| Citrine | |||
| Garnet Gallery | |||
| Iolite | |||
| Misc. Cabs | |||
| Misc. Faceted Gems | |||
| Moonstone | |||
| Opal | |||
| Peridot | |||
| Quartz (Colorless & Rutilated) |
|||
| Ruby & Sapphire | |||
| Smoky Quartz | |||
| Spinel | |||
| Tanzanite | |||
| Topaz | |||
| Tourmaline | |||
| Zircon | |||
| Books | |||
| Pricing Factors | |||
| Our Warranty | |||
Return to
Gemstone and Fossil Page
This example of quartz
with pyrite is has a fancy diamond cut (as in baseball diamond) or what might also be called a kite cut. It is
very clear and colorless and has several pyrite crystals of various sizes suspended within it. This would make
a great and very different pendant.
Calling this gemstone
a hexagon hardly is a good description as you can see. All six sies have are of different length. This makes for
a very usual appearance along with the unsual pyrite additions. There are numerous pyrite crystals of many sizes
within this clear, colorless quartz along with a couple of bubbles on several of the small pyrites.