Amethyst
Although I work with all kinds of gemstones, people are commonly looking for my amethyst pieces. So there’s no surprise that amethyst is one of the most popular gems in the world.
It’s easy to see the attraction of this vividly purple mineral. But did you know that it is one of the many colours of quartz?
Quartz (SiO2) is the most abundant mineral on earth and comes in just about any colour. The different colours are due to trace elements in the crystal structure. The purple colour in amethyst is principally due to traces of iron.
Amethyst crystals are typically found in geodes inside volcanic rocks. These geodes are formed when silica and ferric iron rich water is present inside cavities in the volcanic rock. As this water cools, amethyst crystals are precipitated on the sides of the cavities.
Natural amethyst crystals are pale violet to deep purple. The intensity of the crystals is believed to be due to the amount of electromagnetic energy present in the rock.
Amethyst crystals are often heat treated to deepen the purple colour or to transform it into yellow to brownish citrine.
Although amethyst is typically recognized for it’s purple colour, it can have a rusty red colour known as red or Canadian amethyst as it is commonly found in amethyst from Thunder Bay, Ontario. This red colour is caused by an internal coating of red hemetite just under the crystal surface.
Amethyst is a very popular mineral among collectors. Although tumbled stones and small chunks of amethyst are quite common, there is a huge market for amethyst geodes ranging from the size of a fist to larger than a human body.
This amethyst geode was found in Uruguay and is currently the largest of it’s kind in the world.
For non-mineral collectors, amethyst is commonly cut into a variety of shapes for use in jewelry.
Interesting fact - Amethyst eliminates fleas!
My family has kept a small piece of amethyst in our cats water bowl for over 20 years. When it starts to grow algae, we take it out, scrub it and recharge it in the morning sun. We haven’t seen a flea since we started!
Now that you know that amethyst is purple quartz, you’re probably wondering what other minerals are actually types of quartz. In a future post in the Natural side of Jewelry series, I’ll explain the whole quartz rainbow.
