This Specimen has been sold.
9.8" Dark Smoky Quartz Cluster - Large Crystals
This is a large cluster of dark black, smoky quartz crystals from Brazil. The entire plate is 9.8" wide and the longest point is 5.9" long from its base to tip. The crystals on the specimen vary in size and have beautiful smokey coloration. There is damage to most of the crystals, however most of the damage is minor. It has not been heated or treated to change the natural color.
About Quartz
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.
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.
About Smoky Quartz
Smoky quartz is a variety of quartz distinguished by its smoky gray to deep brown or nearly black coloration, a name inspired by the hazy, smoke-like appearance within the crystal. While some specimens can appear very dark or even opaque, most smoky quartz remains at least partially translucent, allowing light to pass through its internal veils and zoning. The color develops when trace amounts of aluminum within the quartz lattice are exposed to natural irradiation over geologic time, subtly altering the crystal structure and producing its characteristic smoky tones.
Smoky quartz is a variety of quartz distinguished by its smoky gray to deep brown or nearly black coloration, a name inspired by the hazy, smoke-like appearance within the crystal. While some specimens can appear very dark or even opaque, most smoky quartz remains at least partially translucent, allowing light to pass through its internal veils and zoning. The color develops when trace amounts of aluminum within the quartz lattice are exposed to natural irradiation over geologic time, subtly altering the crystal structure and producing its characteristic smoky tones.
SPECIES
Quartz var. Smoky
LOCATION
Minas Gerais, Brazil
SIZE
9.8"long, 6.6" wide, Longest crystal 5.9"
CATEGORY
SUB CATEGORY
ITEM
#60925
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