Crystals and gemstones have been associated with months of the year for almost 2,000 years. Today, we call them birthstones.
Filed under: Geology / Earth Science, Minerals on April 8th, 2020 | No Comments »
Lily wrote to us and asked about the mineral amethyst. Specifically, she wants to know what gives amethyst that beautiful purple color. In this video, we talk about why amethyst is purple, its relation to quartz and an interesting fact about how citrine fits into that mineral family.
Filed under: Geology / Earth Science, Minerals on May 22nd, 2014 | No Comments »
David asked: Are amethysts part of geodes or are the minerals in geodes different? Hi David, geodes can contain amethyst crystals. These unique samples form in open holes in sedimentary rocks such as limestone or igneous rocks likes basalt.
Filed under: Geology / Earth Science, Minerals on January 23rd, 2014 | No Comments »
Amethyst is the purple form of the mineral quartz. Fairly hard, amethyst is a 7 on the Mohs hardness scale. Amethyst is always purple and has a shiny appearance.
Filed under: Geology / Earth Science, Jewelry & Home, Minerals on January 10th, 2011 | No Comments »
February babies are lucky! Amethyst is one of the coolest minerals ever. We love the variations in the purple color and the awesome points that it can form. Amethyst is actually a purple form of the mineral quartz.
Filed under: Geology / Earth Science, Minerals on February 1st, 2010 | No Comments »
Amethyst is a common, purple form of the mineral quartz. Fairly hard, amethyst is a 7 on the Mohs hardness scale which has a range from 1 (softest) to 10 (hardest).
Filed under: Geology / Earth Science, Minerals on March 16th, 2009 | No Comments »