Inner Mongolian quartz point pair tinted with hedenbergite

Inner Mongolian quartz point pair tinted with hedenbergiteLocale: HuangGangLiang mining district, Inner Mongolia, China Approx point length: 2. 75" Approx weight: 32g These quartz points are from HuangGangLiang, and commonly called Mongolian or Inner Mongolian quartz. When the primary inclusion is hedenbergite, enough to give the quartz a greenish tint, it is more appropriately called hedenbergite quartz. In this specimen, a small amount of hedenbergite inclusions produces a lovely mint green hue in the tip

Locale: HuangGangLiang mining district, Inner Mongolia, China

Approx point length: 2.75"

Approx weight: 32g

These quartz points are from HuangGangLiang, and commonly called Mongolian or Inner Mongolian quartz. When the primary inclusion is hedenbergite, enough to give the quartz a greenish tint, it is more appropriately called hedenbergite quartz. In this specimen, a small amount of hedenbergite inclusions produces a lovely mint green hue in the tip of each point, with a quick gradient to colorless quartz. This isn't your typically shiny quartz crystal; it has a frosted luster with a sheen effect, producing a ghostly appearance.

This pair of points is one of my favorites of the Inner Mongolian material because of its excellent form and super clean coloration. The way it catches light makes it seem to glow from within. The broken ends reveal the first generation of growth was icy clear colorless quartz. A second generation of growth occurred, depositing a coating of cloudy included quartz on the surface.

The point is striped with thin angular dark and white lines. The white is a small amount of calcite, which will fluoresce under 365nm UV light. Looking closely, the dark lines are composed of spheres that appear a dark olive green color and almost metallic luster with radial growth. I suspect it could be epidote but admit even with magnification my eyes aren’t good enough to tell—email me if you know about this material, I’d love to learn more!