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2.5" Sunset Phantom Quartz Crystal Cluster - India
This is a beautiful sunset phantom quartz crystal cluster that was collected from the Andhra Parish Mines in Tamil Nadu, India. These crystals all have hematite phantoms that give them a nice, purple-red colored point within a glassy quartz point. This phenomena is often referred to as sunset phantom quartz - an allusion to the purple coloring in contrast with the orange staining of the crystal base which is attributed to iron oxides.
Quartz is the name given to silicon dioxide (SiO2) and is the second most abundant mineral in the Earth's crust. Quartz crystals generally grow in silica-rich environments--usually igneous rocks or hydrothermal environments like geothermal waters--at temperatures between 100°C and 450°C, and usually under very high pressure. In either case, crystals will precipitate as temperatures cool, just as ice gradually forms when water freezes. Quartz veins are formed when open fissures are filled with hot water during the closing stages of mountain formation: these veins can be hundreds of millions of years old.
SPECIES
Quartz & Hematite Inclusions
LOCATION
Karur District, Tamil Nadu, India
SIZE
2.5 x 2.35"
CATEGORY
ITEM
#207028