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Amethyst

Amethyst is the purple variety of quartz.

Colors It Comes In - Lilac to purple, reddish-purple and bluish-purple. Its color comes from small amounts of iron and aluminum in its crystal structure. If exposed to heat, amethyst can turn brown, yellow, or green.

Fracture Pattern -

Rippled fracture: Amethyst can break with a rippled fracture. 
Thumb markings: Amethyst can show "thumb markings". 
Engine turning: The intersection of two sets of curved ripples on a fractured surface can create a pattern similar to "engine turning". 
Brewster fringes: A pattern known as "Brewster fringes" can be seen in natural, twinned amethyst when looking down the optic axis of the gem. 
Phantom crystals: Phantom crystals can be caused by rapid temperature changes that create tiny air bubbles, leaving behind imprints of themselves frozen inside. 

 

Shape - It shows classic quartz crystal shape: a six-sided columnar crystal with a pyramid-shaped termination at the top.

 

Luster - Vitreous

Texture - coarse-grained

Where It Can Be Found - Amethyst is found in a variety of geologic settings but most commonly as crystals lining cavities or voids in volcanic rock, forming geodes as seen here. The major sources for amethyst are Brazil and Uruguay.

Hardness On The Mohs Scale - 7 Out Of 10

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