Quartz with Fuchsite Phantoms

Quartz – SiO2
Elements: Silicon, Oxygen
Class: Silicates – Tectosilicates
Crystal System: Trigonal
Hardness: 7
Quartz
Talc (1)Diamond (10)
Very hard. Scratches glass and steel.
Fuchsite – K(Al,Cr)2(AlSi3O10)(OH)2
Class: Silicates – Phyllosilicates
Crystal System: Monoclinic
Hardness: 2-3
Calcite
Talc (1)Diamond (10)
Soft. A fingernail can scratch it.
Origin: Lovitra, Itremo Massif, Ambatofinandrahana District, Amoron’i Mania – Madagascar
Did you know?

Pressing a quartz crystal makes it give off a precise electric beat, which is why it keeps time in nearly every watch and once tuned the radios of World War II, when good crystals were a strategic resource.

The popular green stone called aventurine is really quartz packed with tiny flakes of fuchsite. Those flakes catch the light and give the stone its soft green glitter, an effect jewelers call aventurescence. So a good deal of the fuchsite people own is hidden inside something sold under another name.