Specimen at a glance
| Mineral | Quartz |
|---|---|
| Chemistry | SiO2 |
| Mohs hardness | 7 |
| Crystal system | Trigonal |
| Locality | Pennsylvania |
| Form | Lot / parcel |
| You receive | The exact lot pictured |
About this specimen
An eight-piece lot of natural quartz specimens from Pennsylvania, showing a nice range of habits from clear druzy crusts to warmer honey and amber-toned crystal clusters. The color variation across this lot comes primarily from iron oxide staining, where iron-bearing groundwater percolating through host rock fractures deposits a thin film of limonite or hematite over growing quartz crystals, tinting them anywhere from pale straw to deep amber without altering the underlying quartz structure itself. Pennsylvania’s varied bedrock geology, including Piedmont metamorphic rock and diabase intrusions, has produced quartz-bearing pockets and veins across much of the state for generations of local rockhounds to explore. Each piece in this lot displays sharp, well-formed crystal faces and good natural luster, making this a fun, affordable parcel for a collector who enjoys sorting through varied material, a teacher building a hands-on mineral set, or anyone just getting started collecting regional Pennsylvania quartz. No two pieces in the lot are exactly alike, giving buyers a genuine sense of the natural variation found within a single quartz-bearing pocket.
Quartz: the science
- Every natural quartz crystal has a six-sided prism capped by a point, the same trigonal geometry whether it is a thumbnail or a meter long.
- Quartz is piezoelectric: squeeze it and it produces a tiny voltage. That property is why quartz keeps time in watches and electronics.
- At Mohs 7 it scratches glass and steel, which is why quartz sand is the main abrasive in nature and why quartz outlasts almost everything on a beach.
Go deeper
Want the full story on quartz: how it forms, how to identify it, and what makes a great specimen?
Questions about this piece
What is quartz?
Quartz is crystalline silicon dioxide and one of the most common minerals in Earth’s crust. Clear, well-formed points and clusters grow in open cavities and veins where silica-rich fluids had room and time to crystallize.
Where was it found?
This lot comes from Pennsylvania. We list a locality whenever it is known, because where a mineral formed is part of its story and its value.
How hard is it, and how should I care for it?
It rates 7 on the Mohs scale. Quartz is Mohs 7 and very durable. Dust with a soft brush or rinse in lukewarm water and air dry. Avoid knocking points together and avoid sudden temperature changes.
Is this the exact lot I will receive?
Yes. This lot was photographed as a group, and you receive the pieces shown.
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